Charade
by aristocratFABLE
Summary: Sakura and Syaoran are arranged to get married. But what’s this? Sakura‘s being clingy? That’s totally unlike her. What on earth is happening? Read to find out! SS and a bit of ET... Chap 8 FINALLY UP!
1. Prologue: Promise

**_A/N: THAT'S IT! I can't hold it in anymore. This story in my head is bugging me to be written. So, here it is my second fanfic, Charade! Anyways, I know some readers had hoped that this fanfic would include fantasy and such but sorry to disappoint you guys, this is base on total humanity. Kero will be Sakura's cat though. Hope you like this!_**

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**Attention: Readers of Purity Love. All those who guessed that Sakura would recover by unicorn's magic, you were right (doesn't matter if it's unicorn's tears or horn, as long as you mentioned unicorn)! I know many thoughtabout phoenix tearswhich actually does too heal physical wounds. I forgot about that. Hehehe.But many of you got the answer. It took me a long time to decide what to do. Anyways, the character would be Sakura's personal maid. I know, bad idea... But I have no other choice. So, this will be like the time of naming Dust. **

**Note: Only people who guessed correctly about PL gets to answer this!**

**Most creative name, your character appears in this story as our cherry blossom personal maid. She plays as someone Sakura really looks up to. Japanese name please.**

**Description**

**Hair: Slivery**

**Gender: Female**

**Eyes: Aqua Blue**

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Age: 26**

**People eligible to answer this: you don't have to review for this story if you find it bad, I don't mind. You can just email me at snowchilly (at) hotmail (dot) com**

**Lianne**

**Pinaygrrl**

**Goldpen**

**Littlelonewolf**

**Zhugefan (You mention mystical creatures,so you're in!)**

**Jienko **

**cherryli**

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**Summary**: Sakura and Syaoran are arranged to get married. But what's this? Sakura's being clingy? That's totally unlike her. What on earth is happening? Read to find out! SS and a bit of ET

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**Disclaimer: I don't own cardcaptor sakura... and I'm sure you don't too!**

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**Prologue: Promise **

"Mother? Who are we waiting for?"

"A friend from Japan, Syaoran, they're really nice. Be polite to them when they arrive ok?"

The innocent six-year old nodded. His amber eyes filled with excitement. This young boy is the only son of Ryu Li, the richest businessman in Hong Kong. His mother, Yelan Li, was the second in command of the company. Now, together with his four older sisters, they stood in a straight line, waiting for their guests from Japan to arrive.

Numerous bodyguards stood around them, blocking any reporters from getting close to the family of seven. It has always been like this since the day of the young boy's birth, being watched by the whole nation every single day, not that it bothered much of the heir to the Li's fortune.

Finally, a large white jet settled on the hard ground. From what everyone could tell, it's a private jet owned by a rich company. On the surface of the jet was written the words "Kinomoto". Beside it was a huge cherry blossom emblem.

Through the huge paned glass windows, Syaoran watched at the jet doors opened. Several figures stepped out. Since the jet was too far away, the boy couldn't see how his guests looked like...yet.

Syaoran felt a small tug at his hand that was held by his mother. He turned and gazed at his mother with his amber eyes.

"Let's go."

The Li family walked closer to the entrance. Soon, a tall figure stepped out. He was one of the richest businessmen in Japan, Fujitaka Kinomoto, the owner of the Kinimoto Corp. He was soon followed by a smiling lady and her son.

The lady, Nadeshiko Kinomoto, was once a model in Japan until she married Fujitaka. With her wavy long hair, enchanting emerald eyes and thin figure, one could have thought that she was a goddess from heaven.

Her son, Touya Kinomoto, who was just the mere age of twelve, looked very mature and instantly caught the attention of the Li sisters with his dark ivory hair and shining black eyes.

Syaoran, who still didn't understand the meaning of attraction, was wondering why his sisters' faces were plastered against the glass panel which divides the arrivals and the people who came to greet them.

Then, something caught his attention, a pair of feet that was trailing behind Nadeshiko.

Curious, he strained to see who was behind the lady but his attempt was futile.

Finally, the family crossed the arrival gates and met up with the Li family.

At first the two businessmen exchanged handshakes and warm smiles. The Li sisters then started to glomp the twelve-year old who tried to escape by running behind his father. He then realized that unlike the girls back in Japan, these four were not afraid of crossing his father and even tried to hug or, in the twelve-year old opinion, strangle him to death.

Syaoran bowed respectfully at the two oldest Kinomotos, "It's a pleasure to meet you Kinomoto-sans"

Nadeshiko gasped, "Such a polite young boy! How old is he?"

Ryu replied warmly, "He's our youngest son, Syaoran Li. He's six."

Ryu Li then noticed a small head poking behind from Nadeshiko.

"Hello? Who's this?"

The "head" then revealed more of her face. Pure emerald orbs, a replica of her mother stared back at Ryu's amber ones.

Fujitaka smiled, "This is Sakura Kinomoto, my daughter. She's five and really shy."

Syaoran, who was now beside his father, could only stare at the young girl that finally emerged from behind her mother. Her hair was short with the colour of auburn and she was wearing a pink dress with floral patterns all over.

Syaoran did the first thing that came to his mind, "Hi. My name is Syaoran Li."

He stretched out his hand, wanting to shake the girl's own.

The girl's attention finally turned to the smiling six-year old. At first, she looked hesitant and was very quiet. Syaoran almost retracted his hand, but suddenly, he felt a small yet warm feeling covering his palm.

"Nice to meet you Syaoran. My name is Sakura Kinomoto."

That was how Syaoran Li and Sakura Kinomoto met.

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The two youngsters got along quite nicely since their meeting at the airport. Fujitaka was actually visiting the Li family for a month before returning to Japan. 

The adults watched as their youngest children played tag in the garden.

"I bet you can't catch me!" giggled Sakura as she once again leaped over some twigs.

Syaoran Li ran after his friend while yelling, "Oh yes I can!"

In the end, Syaoran managed to corner Sakura at the wall and jumped on her, which resulted in the two rolling on the grass, laughing together.

Nadeshiko then spoke up, "They look so cute together don't you think?"

Ryu chuckled to himself, "I guess so. This is the first time Syaoran has gotten real close with a girl besides his sisters."

Then the four parents suddenly had the same idea. They stared at each other and smiled, fully knowing what each other was thinking about. What if, they were to get married when they are older?

Yelan then said, "We should reconsider this, what if the two found someone else when they're older?"

The other three bright smiles turned solemn.

Fujitaka commented while sighing, "I guess you're right. There's no use forcing love through marriage."

Unknown to the adults, the two youngsters had overheard their parents' conversation.

Sakura asked Syaoran curiously, "Syao-kun? What's marriage?"

Syaoran thought hard before replying the young girl, "I think it's when two adults make a promise to each other that they'll be together forever!"

**(A/N: Remember. They're young!)  
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The young girl's face lit up with happiness, "Wow! Is that really true? Then, when I'm older, I want to have this "marriage-thingy" with you Syao-kun!"

Syaoran smiled at her, "Promise?"

"Promise!"

With that, Sakura lifted her pinky. Syaoran happily lifted his own to cross with Sakura's. They smiled at each other, not knowing that this small simple promise would affect the later part of their life.

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Time flew past and the Kinomotos had to return to Japan. Touya was more than happy to leave the four sisters. However, for the youngest two, they were both saddened by the fact that they had to leave their new best friend. 

"Come on Sakura dear! We have to go!"

Syaoran stared sadly at Sakura, who was about to cry.

"I don't want to leave you Syao-kun!"

Syaoran smiled weakly, "Me too Saku-chan."

Sakura glanced back at her family before looking back at Syaoran, "Remember our promise?"

Syaoran seemed surprised but smiled, "Yes."

Sakura wiped away her tears and said, "Promise me you'll keep it?"

The young boy nodded, he was also crying, in his heart.

She gave him one last hug before running through the glass doors, "Bye Syao-kun! We'll meet again! I just know it!"

The young boy shouted back, "I'm sure we will. Bye Saku-chan!"

The Li family watched as their friends stepped into their private jet. Sakura gave a last wave before steeping into the plane. Syaoran could only wave back.

Once the plane flew away, a lone tear escaped from Syaoran's eyes.

He quickly wiped it away before anyone noticed it.

A question from his sister then alerted him, "Say Syaoran? What's the promise?"

The young boy looked annoyingly at his sisters, "Why do you want to know?"

The four sisters gave their best puppy dog eye look at their youngest brother, "Pretty please with a cherry on top?"

His answer was flat, "No."

"But WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?"

He then turned on his heel and followed after his mother, "It's something only me and Sakura should know."

The four girls grumbled, knowing they'll get nothing out of their youngest brother for they don't know the word, "blackmail" yet.

Syaoran stared back at the sky as he caught the last glimpse of the Kinomoto's jet.

"We'll meet again Sakura, I promise you."

**To be continued...**

**_A/N: How was it? I know it's short but it's only the prologue! The real story begins next chapter! Please R&R!_**


	2. Chapter 1: Shock

**_A/N: Hi there guys! I managed to get done with this chapter in between my busy schedules. Hope you like chapter 2 of Charade! Oooo...15 reviews! Three times better than Purity Love! Does this mean the start of a successful story? I certainly hope so!_**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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_Reviewers_

_LupineLightning-IllusionDragon: Thanks for the review! Sorry for the late update. I was actuallt trying to finish Purity Love before coming back to this but it'll be too cruel right? Lol_

_Unknown-Character: Purity Love is gonna end in like four chapters maybe? So I thought, "Might as well get started on a new one"...so, here it is!_

_MunChixD: Sorry for the late update. They will grow to love each other but like any other stories, there'll be obstacles...Hohohoho_

_Erika-chan: There's a reason why she will be clingy. I won't tell you guys...yet!_

_dbzgtfan2004: Yup S+S FOREVER! Erm..sorry about that... Thanks for the review!_

_Miku Takani: Thanks for the review! Sorry for the late update and here's the next part of this story!_

_GakiGurl09: Me too! S+S ALL THE WAY! But I'm sure you've guessed that already, lol_

_Caiyu: Thanks! This is however, my second fanfic. It's because I gained more experience after writing my first one,_

_Crystalz Tearz: Nope. It's not a dare...keep tuning in...Hohohoho!_

_coca24cola: Do five and six year olds remember anything? Hmmmmm...we just have to wait and see!_

_FlowerLover: I found the plot quite ridiculous at first really...but as I develop it more, it turned out to be one of the best plots I had ever thought of!_

_litod3vil: Thanks for the review! Hope you like this chapter!_

_Yingyangjader: Here's the next chapter! Sorry for the late update! Hope you will forgive me!  
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_Goldpen: Thanks for the e-mail for the names! I chose one of yours actually...but then I accidentally DELETED it...Sigh...Sorry about that. Can you repeat the names again?_

_sw i t ch p in k: Hi switchpink. Thanks for the review! You already know the plot since I tell you about it in school today. Hope it won't spoil everything! Oh ya and jia you on your story!_

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**Chapter 1: Shock**

_12 years later..._

The young heir had grown into a young man. Due to years of martial arts training, his body muscles developed...which, of course did not help him to escape from his fickle-minded female fans. Syaoran Li was known to be one of the most wanted bachelors in Hong Kong.

The innocent sparkle in his fierce amber eyes had long disappeared as it was replaced by annoyance, thanks to his "oh-so-favourite" sisters, Fanran, Fuutie, Feimie and Sheifa.

Speaking of the devils...

"Syaoran-chan! Mother and Father want to see you!" The four sisters' high-pitched voice echoed through the hallway, which was then followed by a few giggles.

Muttering incoherent words to himself, he slid his sliver sword back into its sheath. Sweat trickled down his bronze-toned body; he had been working out in the house gym for the past hour.

"Tell Mother and Father I'll be there in five..." Syaoran shouted back. He then heard soft footsteps leading back up the stairs.

Using his green towel to wipe the sweat from his body, he wondered why his parents called him to their office.

"_Could it be about handing over the company to me? If I worked so hard since I was young for nothing, I'm gonna leave this pathetic dump..."_

Pulling a black shirt over his head, he placed his sword back on the equipment shelves, which were full of other weapons like, lances and bows.

He walked up the dark stairs, making creaking noises as he went; then, he reached the hallways of the Li mansion.

The amber-eyed young man trudged past thousands of pictures that were hung all over the walls of the hallways. Then, he reached a large oak door.

On the door was the Li's family emblem carved out of the best ivory one could find. The emblem is round with an artistic "L" shape in the middle.

Slowly, he knocked. A voice boomed from the other side, "Come in."

The door creaked opened as Syaoran pushed it aside. The room was carpeted with the colours of red and gold. Inside all four walls were shelves for thousands of books. It was a library, office and tea room rolled into one.

Ryu Li and Yelan Li were sitting at their respective tables, both were wearing rimmed glasses and drinking tea and coffee while looking through stacks of documents.

"You called me?" Syaoran enquired to his parents.

Yelan looked up from the approval document she was reading, "Yes, we need to talk to you about something...or someone..."

Syaoran quirked an eyebrow before sighing, "Please don't tell me... another engagement?"

Syaoran Li was also notorious for driving away even the most persistent women that were engaged to him.

Ryu Li shook his head, "Son, you have to be married before you take over the company. It's to ensure there'll be an heir after you!"

Syaoran crossed his arms, "I told you Father. I am very capable of finding my own spouse. But don't you think I'm too young? I'm 18!"

Yelan took off her glasses, "Please just let us tell you who you are engaged to first ok? It's someone you know a long time ago..."

"_Now this is interesting..."_

Syaoran was curious to find out whom he was engaged to now, "Alright then... who is it?"

Yelan and Ryu looked at each other before nodding, "It's Sakura Kinomoto."

Syaoran's memory tugged at that name. A young girl with beautiful emerald eyes and copper locks appeared in his mind. Something else tugged at his memory... A promise?

"The youngest daughter of Fujitaka Kinomoto? Haven't we met before?"

Ryu nodded, "That was twelve years ago when they came to visit us. After their visit, the company had experienced one problem after another. So, they didn't visit us for the past few years."

Syaoran remembered that they used to send letters to one another till they were eleven and twelve when she suddenly stopped replying to his letters. It hurt at first but after some time, Syaoran had soon forgotten about his childhood friend.

Suddenly he mind went back to the main topic: Marriage

"Wait...Wait... Wait... Hold up...I'm engaged to her? As in ENGAGED? WHY HER?"

Yelan Li narrowed her eyes at her son's sudden outburst, "She is the last one. If you ever want to take over the company, I suggest you take her seriously. Oh and by the way, she's coming in two days time."

That took about a minute to sink into the young heir, "TWO DAYS?"

Ryu Li rubbed his temple, "Yes. Two days. I expect you to meet her at the airport, and show her around town. Tour the mansion with her and everything else is that clear?"

Syaoran pondered for a moment. He remembered Sakura was very vivacious and kind. She was quite cute when she was five. Surely she hadn't change much right?

Syaoran mumbled, "Crystal."

Without another word, the young heir stepped out of the room.

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Eriol Hiiragizawa chuckled when he saw his cousin walking down the hallway. By the look on his face, Eriol could tell Syaoran wasn't happy once again. Not that he always happy...

"Auntie and Uncle engaged you to another girl again?" His sapphire eyes flashed tauntingly.

Syaoran looked sideways at his cousin, "What do you think?"

Syaoran placed his hand on the door identification panel beside his room.

"Identification complete. Welcome back Young Master Li.", the voice of a robotic woman beeped from the door panel.

Syaoran opened the door to his room as both him and Eriol stepped in.

The room was obviously, green and about ten metres wide and twelve metres long. The four canopy bed was dark forest green, the table was made of bright jade marble, the toilet that was connected to the room were tiled with green marble. The only things that weren't green in his room are the sliver plasma television, his sliver stereo, metal handles on furniture and the books on his green shelves. One could already guess what his favourite colour was.

Eriol sat down on an armchair beside the shelves of books and immediately started to read one of the history books on the shelves.

Syaoran heaved a heavy sigh and slumped back onto his soft bed, something he doesn't want to share with anyone. Not even his future spouse..

Eriol looked up from his book and ran through his midnight blue hair with his hand, "You seem less troubled than your previous engagements. There's something different about this one right?"

Syaoran's reply was only a grunt.

Eriol smirked, "Ah! So you know her?"

Another grunt.

Eriol's eyes sparkled mischievously, "Someone that you may possibly like?"

At this, Syaoran shot up from bed, his face cherry red, "I DO NOT LIKE KINOMOTO!"

Eriol chuckled at his hot-tempered little cousin; he was a year older than Syaoran.

"Kinomoto? The girl you've been sending letters to till you're twelve?"

Syaoran looked away, determined to keep his flushed face away from the sight of his cousin. Eriol knew about the connection between him and Sakura for he once found a whole stack of Sakura's letters in Syaoran's drawer.

"Yes."

Eriol flipped a page of his book, "So when is she coming?"

"In two days."

"I see..."

"..."

"..."

"So are we gonna prank this one?"

Syaoran shot Eriol a look. Even though the two cousins weren't at good terms at each other, partly because one of Eriol's favourite hobbies was to tease his cousin, they share a common interest- pulling pranks on Syaoran's fiancés.

"Maybe not this one."

Eriol quirked his eyebrow, "Hmm, this one must be special right? Usually you will jump at the chance to think of pranks to pull on your fiancés ... which are of course now ex-fiancés."

Syaoran shook his head, "Mother is serious about this one. If I don't marry her, I won't be able to take over the company."

Eriol sighed and placed slid the book back into its position on the shelf and pulled out an even thicker book, "Well, little cousin, what are you going to do?"

Syaoran shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know ... and stop calling me that!

Eriol chuckled once again at his cousin's reaction.

Syaoran sighed and turned over onto his stomach, "Sometimes, I don't even know why I am related to you."

Syaoran's thoughts began to ramble at that point. "_I hope Kinomoto hasn't change much..."_

He doesn't know how wrong he was...does he?

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_Two days later..._

Syaoran and his family, which includes Eriol, entered the airport. The media was also not far behind them. God knows how the media found out about the engagement.

The cool air blew against Syaoran's hair as he crossed the glass barriers. Flashes went off everywhere. The Li family was used to it though.

Soon they found themselves waiting at the same gate the Kinomotos came from twelve years ago.

The time ticked by and Syaoran was getting impatient.

"_Where the hell is she?"_

Yelan turned to her son and say, "One more thing, there'll be a welcoming party for Sakura and her cousin in three days time."

Syaoran nodded. There was always a welcoming party for each of his fiancés. But..

"Cousin?" Syaoran's voice echoed.

Ryu nodded, "Tomoyo Daidouji. She's a famous fashion designer in Japan although she's only seventeen. Her mother is Sonomi Daidouji, president of a another famous toy company"

The four sisters squealed in excitement as Syaoran rolled his eyes.

"THE TOMOYO DAIDOUJI? WE LOVE HER DESIGNS!"

The squealed at their mother before squealing at each other again. Soon, all they could talk about was different seasons of fashion wear and accessories that were designed by Tomoyo Daidouji.

The same thought went through Syaoran and Eriol's mind, "What's with girls and fashion?"

A few minutes later, a plane landed at the private jet gates.

For the first time among all of the other fiancés, Syaoran could feel he was nervous of meeting Sakura once again.

"_What the hell is wrong with me?"_

A few figures stepped out from the plane as Syaoran's heart thumped.

"_Will she remember me?"_

The plane door closed.

"_Will she still be the same as before?"_

The glass door opened as the outline of the figures became clearer.

Syaoran gulped as two feminine figures finally came into his view.

_Oh God._

He could also hear Eriol's intake a breath.

The two girls were drop dead gorgeous.

One was with long wavy auburn locks that framed her face delicately. Her slender thin hands were by her side. She was wearing a pale pink dress that was accompanied with a star choker around her neck. It was low cut and Syaoran could almost see her, well, you know... She wore glass high heels and pink sunglasses. The dress also hugged her figure perfectly. Syaoran almost died right there when the girl removed her sunglasses. Behind the shades showed a pair of jade emerald eyes that sparkled innocently which held Syaoran's gaze for quite a while.

"_IS THAT SAKURA?" _

Eriol's attention on the other hand, was on the lady next to Sakura. With dark black way hair that ended below her waist, her amethyst eyes sparkled mysteriously. She was wearing a pale purple dress that was almost similar to Sakura's except for a plum blossom choker around her neck. Her pale whitely skin seemed so soft under Eriol's eyes.

"_Boy am I gonna have fun with this one.."_

The two girls stopped in front of the Li family

Not one spoke a word though the camera flashes became more frequent.

Syaoran was going to speak when...

"MY SYAO-CHAN! IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"

Sakura jumped onto Syaoran and hugged him, tightly. Syaoran's eyes widened at the girl sudden actions and toppled over. Her soft body pressed against his, shocking Syaoran even more. Goosebumps rose when he recognized the hug as a "clingy type" and not a "miss you" type.

He could hear Eriol's snicker not far behind.

_Oh god... _

**To be continued...**

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A/N: HA! How was that? Forgive the grammatical errors for I was hurrying to post this one up. Please tell me how you think of it? And it seems I like to make "love at first sight" stories. Don't worry, Syaoran's opinion of Sakura is gonna change soon... R&R Please!**


	3. Chapter 2: Obsession

**_A/N: I am so sorry to keep you guys waiting! Seriously, the past few weeks were so tiring. Then, when I finally decided to update, I went down with fever for about five days. After that, I got a full body rash and then stomach flu. That lasted for another week. Did I mention I had sore eyes, body aches and headaches? Sigh...anyways, looking at how pathetic my updating has been recently, I am now trying extra hard to make longer chapters! I'm updating Charade first. Purity Love may be updated a few days later. As for the reviews count, some reviewed the first chapter, making it turn to 18. The second chapter got 17! I'm so happy!_**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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_Reviewers_

_A/N: I received an e-mail saying that the website has banned authors from replying their reviewers. I have no idea why but since I don't wanna get banned, I'll stop till I get some right news. I am so sorry you guys, I'm sure you've heard some authors being banned around here! Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them. Now on with the story!_

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**Chapter 2: Obsession**

Tomoyo watched Sakura, frowning, as if she's upset of Sakura's behavior. Eriol watched the scene carefully, something didn't seem right. From the letters Sakura sent Syaoran when they were younger, he could tell Sakura was a very sweet girl. Not the snobby type, just sweet and kind. Heck, she even said she loved sports!

Syaoran, on the other hand, who was on the floor, was trying to get out of Sakura's strong grip. This seventeen-year-old may be pretty, but from one little hug, Syaoran could already tell this girl was a snob!

Hell, he wasn't even certain _if_ this girl was his _dearest_ childhood friend!

"_But still, she **is** pretty..."_

Syaoran's eyes widened at his thought. Quickly, he shook his queer feelings away and concentrated on getting the girl off his chest.

Finally, Sakura released her grip on Syaoran and stood up.

"Oh dear, I'm sooooo sorry Syao-chan. It was an accident!"

Syaoran coughed and eyed the girl carefully, "It's ok."

Yelan seemed unfazed by Sakura's behavior while the Li sisters whispered to each other.

Emerald eyes darted around, observing each and every one of the Lis, her plan seemed to be working...

Wei, the Li family butler, then approached the crowd.

"Master, Madam, the limo is waiting."

Ryu nodded and spoke calmly, "Let's continue this conversation in the limo shall we?"

No one dared to make an opposition.

Sakura and Tomoyo also seemed unfazed by the media that was surrounding them. Syaoran then realized that they must have their own fair share of paparazzi back at their own country.

The crowd exited the airport and one by one stepped into the Limo that was waiting for them right outside the entrance.

The Li sisters took the front section while Yelan, Ryu, Tomoyo, Sakura, Eriol and Syaoran took the back section of the Limousine.

The driver pressed on the gas and the Limo finally started to move.

Breaking the silence, Sakura once again latched onto Syaoran, who choked and spoke, "It's so nice to see you again, Mr and Mrs Li."

Yelan chuckled softly, "It's alright to call me mother dear child. After all, you'll be my daughter very soon."

A glint appeared in Sakura's eyes but dimmed almost immediately.

"Yes, _mother_."

This didn't go unnoticed by Syaoran. It was strange, her voice seemed forced, it was as if she didn't want to call Yelan, mother. But if she loved him...No! If she were obsessed with him, wouldn't she be downright exhilarated if Yelan were to allow her to call her mother?

Tomoyo was silent all the way in the limo as she looked out of the window. It was as if she hated being there. Sakura didn't seem to notice but continued to latch onto the amber-eyed heir, making him detest his fiancé more and more with each passing second.

Eriol tried to strike up a conversation.

"So Daidouji, I heard you are a famous fashion designer in Japan. Even the Li sisters are big fans of yours. How ever did you do it?"

Finally, amethyst eyes turned to the young man. She then smiled gently.

"It all started when I learn how to sew actually. When I was about nine, I started making costumes for Sakura. She really disliked that."

Eriol seemed interested and pressed on, "Oh? When you were nine? You must be a natural at fashion designing."

Tomoyo seemed pleased at the compliment and smiled even wider, "Thanks, I suppose."

The conversation went on for a few more minutes. Eriol realized Tomoyo was one amazing teenager. Her first successful design was when she was only 15. Sakura was the one who modeled her design. Being the youngest daughter of the richest businessman in Japan does have its perks.

Syaoran wasn't surprised that Sakura had the job of a part-time model. With her hourly-shaped curves, no man could resist her body, even him.

Let's just say it was extremely hard for Syaoran to not stare at anywhere else below her face.

Soon, the family reached the Li mansion.

Tomoyo immediately whipped out her trusty video camera.

Sakura finally let go of Syaoran and chatted with Yelan.

"I have a dog actually. He had some...problems due to his huge appetite. He'll be coming over with my personal maid next week who is taking care of him now. Will there be a problem?"

Yelan shook her head, "No. Not at all!"

The Li sisters finally approached Tomoyo and asked her about her summer design releases.

Tomoyo smiled and answered all of their questions readily.

The Li sisters didn't go anywhere close to Sakura. Sakura didn't seem to mind though.

When the soon-to-be wed couple entered the mansion and out of earshot distance, Fanran asked a question.

"Say Tomoyo. Are you close to Kinomoto? You two seemed so...different!"

Tomoyo's smile disappeared from her face.

"We are very close since we grew up together...Till about a year ago."

Feimei then asked, "What happened a year ago?"

Tomoyo turned away from the Li sisters as her wavy hair swept behind her, "The same thing happening now."

Then, she walked into the Li mansion silently. The Li sisters stood behind, confused. What could have happened a year ago?

Eriol, who was still stepping out of the limo, watched Tomoyo's back. Something wasn't right and he was going to find out what was it.

_In the Living room..._

"WHAT?"

Yelan sighed, "Yes Syaoran. You've heard me. You and Sakura are to share a room."

Syaoran sighed and sat back down on the couch. He already had a hard time trying to avoid the girl and now he had to sleep in the same room with her?

Sakura smiled widely. Syaoran eyed his fiancé once again. This Sakura seemed so different from the young girl he met years ago. The usual gleam in here beautiful emerald eyes disappeared. Her smile, every laugh, every movement she made seem... Fake.

"And now, I want you to give her a tour around our mansion."

Syaoran sighed and turned to Sakura, who looked up at him with a plain look.

"Follow me."

Sakura smiled once again and latched onto his arm, "Sure, _Syao-chan_."

Syaoran and Sakura left the room, leaving Syaoran's parents watching their backs.

"Fujitaka warned me about this."

Ryu stared at his wife, "You think Syaoran could change her mind?"

Yelan sighed and rubbed her temples, "I hope so. He tried _everything_. This was his last resort."

* * *

S+S

Syaoran immediately spoke up when they left the living room and gripped Sakura's wrist, tightly.

"Ok. Let me ask you just one little question. What HAPPENED to you?"

Sakura struggled to get out of his hard grip, "Let me go!"

Syaoran gritted his teeth and pulled her close to him.

Emerald met Amber.

Fear and Guilt were in her eyes.

Her icy barriers broke down and tears brimmed her emerald eyes.

"Let me go."

Her voice was firm and clear.

Syaoran closed his eyes and reopened them and then let go of her wrist.

"You know. I used to like you. Heck, I used to have a crush on you when we were ten and eleven. Stupid I know, crushing on someone through letters... But that's why I actually gave this dumb marriage a chance. But now, even if I am physically attracted to you, I hate your attitude. Why did you change? The Sakura I used to know didn't use to be like this."

Sakura looked down, ashamed, "I'm sorry." Her voice was soft and for once, it didn't seem faked.

Syaoran scoffed at strode away, "Sorry doesn't cut it, Sakura."

Little that the couple know, Tomoyo was watching the scene.

"_I told you Sakura, but you didn't believe me."_

That night...

Syaoran sighed as he lay on his bed's green silk covers, clad in only cotton pyjamas bottoms. He and Sakura didn't see each other whole day, not that he wants to. New furniture to house all of Sakura's belongings was present in his room. A new sliver cardboard, bookshelf and make up table were placed at the upper right corner in his room. Also, her luggage had already been brought in. It has already been unpacked by the staff in the mansion.

Syaoran sighed and thought back to the events that happened during the day.

He didn't mean to reveal his little crush to Sakura. It was just the spur of the moment. From her letters placed in pink envelopes, he actually began to like his little pen pal. Till, the time she stopped writing that is.

He was brought out of his reverie when he heard the door creak open. A smiling Sakura entered the room. She stared at Syaoran's chest before snapping out of her thoughts.

"Hi Syao-chan!" Her flirty voice swept the cold room.

Syaoran sat up, stunned. Had she already forgotten what happened during the day? He certainly hasn't.

"Wait ...How did you get in?"

She blinked and grinned, "_Mother_ input my handprint on the identification panel."

Syaoran groaned, "_Great...Just great_!"

She winked at stepped into the bathroom, "I'll just change."

Syaoran nodded dumbly. He dived under his silk covers and pondered. Why did Sakura act as if nothing has happened?

Before he could think further, his bathroom door opened.

His breath hitched for the second time of the day.

Auburn hair cascading down her back, she wore a semi-transparent nightgown. It was light pink in colour and rather skimpy. It reached to her knees and had frills at the edges.

"_No doubt another one of Daidouji designs."_

Sakura smirked and climbed onto the bed.

Syaoran gulped. He was after all, a guy. And a guy has certain...weaknesses when it comes to girls in nightgowns, right?

He looked around nervously and spotted the switch that controls the light in the room.

"Errr...LIGHTS OUT!"

He flipped the switch and immediately closed his eyes and lay on the bed. He felt Sakura slip into the covers beside him.

"Good night Syao-chan!"

Boy... He could already see countless of sleepless nights ahead of him...

* * *

The next day... **_(A/N: Remember the party is the next day!)_**

Sakura woke up to find Syaoran missing from his bed.

"_I'm sorry Syaoran. But this is the only way..."_

She sighed and washed up in the bathroom that was connected to the bedroom.

She slipped on a yellow sundress and combed her long auburn locks. She stared at her reflection.

All she could see was an empty shell. She hated that look. Jade eyes void of life stared back at their copy.

"_I want this done and over with..."_

She stood up and left the room. Looking around, she tried to remember the way to the dining hall from the time she explored the mansion yesterday.

"_Uhhh...I think it's this way!"_

After about ten minutes, she realized she was indeed lost.

Suddenly, she heard birds chirping and slashes of metal. Furrowing her eyebrows, she took another right turn.

"Oh my..."

She came face to face with one of the most beautiful garden she had ever seen. Bushes blooming with flowers at every corner, butterflies fluttering around the roses and a fountain were right situated in the middle of the garden. Water was also sprouting from a cupid angel statue right in the middle of the garden.

"_It seems so familiar..." _

Little does she know, it's the very same garden she used to play in with Syaoran when they were small. It was also the same place they made that promise..

**Flashback**

_Sakura asked Syaoran curiously, "Syao-kun? What's marriage?"_

_Syaoran thought hard before replying the young girl, "I think it's when two adults make a promise to each other that they'll be together forever!"_

**End of Flashback**

"Who's there?"

She gasped and broke out of her thoughts. She stopped and looked around. There, behind the fountain, catching his breath stood Syaoran in his training trousers.

_**(A/N: This chapter is going nowhere really...)**_

Sakura almost fainted at the sight of Syaoran. Sweat glistening off his bronze-toned body, Syaoran's muscles rippled. His strong arms crossed over his chest as his amber eyes shone with annoyance. His chocolate brown hair stuck to his forehead due to his sweat.

"I...ermm..."

Sakura bit her lip, "I lost my way..."

Syaoran scoffed once again and said, "If you're heading for the dining hall, turn right twice from the next corner. I'm going back to training."

Sakura squeaked and scurried away.

"_What was with that flashback?"_

"_Not my idea to start a day..."_

Once again, she strode down the hallways, alone and cold.

_Alone... _

For the first time, she realized she was all alone in the Li mansion. Tomoyo was avoiding her...so were the Li sisters. She had no one to talk to, even her fiancé tried to stay away from her as far as possible.

"_Well, at least it was planned that way..." _

She shivered and stepped into the dining hall. Everything seemed so familiar yet so cold.

The Li family, except for Syaoran, Tomoyo and Eriol were already present.

Tomoyo glanced at her but turned back to her toast.

"Good morning dear. Had a good sleep?"

Sakura smiled back weakly, "Yes mother."

The Li sisters looked at each other and decided to excuse themselves from the table.

Yelan frowned at her four daughters' action. _"I have to talk to them..."_

As breakfast progressed, with Syaoran entering in the middle of it, Eriol observed the interaction between Sakura and Tomoyo. It was as if they were strangers.

"_It is as if all this is an act, right from the beginning..."_

**To be continued...**

**A/N: Ah! Finally finished. So much sexual attraction and suspicion! Not to mention tension! And it is only the second chapter! Syaoran's attracted to Sakura even though he hates her attitude and Sakura's alone with Tomoyo avoiding her. Even the Li sisters doesn't like Sakura! Sakura's planning something...WHy does she want everyone to hate her?Anyways, Kero will appear the chapter after next, which is the ball as her dog. Hope you all like this chapter! **


	4. Chapter 3: Arrival

**_A/N: Hi! Hi. How's everyone doing? I am finally back on schedule. Thanks so much for the reviews! I did some random picking and Charade won! So here's the next chapter! Sakura is acting weird isn't she? Oh ya! I found a way to be able to copy my reviews list. Instead of clickin, I press Contol! It won't freeze that way!_**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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_Reviewers: Thanks to_

_pink babie_

_Crystalz Tearz_

_Bizoitnott_

_LadyAkina_

_Pinaygrrl_

_MunChixD_

_Maziy_

_BriAnna_

Ema

_Ema_

_Rinoa Leonheartilly_

_3musketteers_

_coca24cola_

_Erika-chan_

_Sakura Mei Yunalesca_

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**Chapter 3: Party**

Meiling Rae was on her way to the Li mansion.

She had just received news of another welcoming ball for her cousin, Syaoran Li's fiancé.

As usual, Yelan Li called her over to help with the planning as she was known as the Li family best decorator. She had studied interior designing while in university.

Now, she was working as one of the most famous interior designer in Hong Kong.

Also, besides in her skills of designing, she was also a master of martial arts. She trained with Syaoran when she was small.

Initially, she had a small crush on Syaoran. Who could blame her? Syaoran looked so cute when he was young. However, now her feelings seemed to have disappeared into thin air as she grew up and it was replaced by family love.

Sighing, Meiling stared at the Li mansion from the window of her Limo. She wondered if Syaoran's new fiancé would be as snotty and bratty as the others. If she was, she would gladly help Syaoran kick the woman out of the house.

The Li mansion gates opened as Mei Ling's sleek sliver Limo drove into the area. Tires screeched and Mei Ling's butler opened the door for his mistress.

"MEILING-CHAN!"

Ruby eyes widened in surprise as her four other older cousins glomped her again. Meiling laughed as all four Li sisters started to blast questions like there was no tomorrow.

"It's nice to see you all again!"

"Mei Ling-chan! You've got to help us! Syaoran's new fiancé is the worst!"

"Mei Ling raised her eyebrow, "I'm sure Syaoran-kun and Eriol-kun could handle it..."

One of the Li sisters shook her head, "It's not going well. Syaoran-chan and Eriol-kun haven't played ANY pranks on her since she got here. Oh did I mention her cousin is Tomoyo Daidouji who would I like to say is totally b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l?"

Meiling's curiosity perked ... no pranks? Something is going on here...

"I'll see what I can do...could you all please get off me? Wait... Did you say TOMOYO DAIDOUJI?"

Meiling was also a fan of Tomoyo's designs. Hell, she was wearing one right there and then.

"I've got to see her!"

The five walked into the mansion. They shrieked with joy as Tomoyo and Eriol were seen stepping out of the dining hall to the right.

"TOMOYO-CHAN!"

All five ran towards their favourite fashion designer. Meiling's smile grew wider as she clasped Tomoyo's hand.

"Hi there! Nice to meet you. I'm Meiling Rae, Syaoran's favourite cousin. I'm just a fan of your works!"

Tomoyo smiled, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Eriol's then spoke, "Favourite cousin huh?"

Meiling attention turned to Eriol with her eyes laughing, "Who else could it be? You?"

Before Eriol could say anything, Yelan, Sakura, Syaoran and Ryu had come out to see what all the commotion was.

Syaoran wondered, "Meiling?"

Meiling ran towards and gave her cousin a hug, "Hello Syaoran!" She didn't realize Syaoran's face was turning from normal to purplish-blue.

Sakura watched the scene as Syaoran tried to gasp for breath. Another Li was added to her count. However, a green flame was ignited in her heart. Anger burned within her.

"_Why is she hugging Syaoran like that?"_

"Ahem!"

Meiling's attention was turned to Sakura. Her eyes narrowed as both girls glared at each other, "Ya?"

Syaoran felt as the tension grew, "Erm... Meiling, this is Sakura Kinomoto, my fiancé and vice versa."

Meiling, being the observant one, had already sensed the anger radiating from Sakura. She had to admit this Kinomoto girl was pretty. Still, she didn't look like the petty type. Why was this girl so special? Why did her two cousins stop their usual pranks?

Sakura on the other hand was wondering what she was doing. She knew she was angry with the new arrival...The question is...why?

Slowly, Meiling let go of Syaoran and turned to Yelan and Ryu. "It's so nice to see you again, Auntie, Uncle."

Relief washed over Sakura, so this girl was just another one of Syaoran's cousins. She was just hugging Syaoran because she missed him. Still...

"Good to see you again Meiling. Let's go and talk with the servants about the decorations. I'm sure you've already thought of that? I've already talked to the chef about the food."

Meiling nodded and took out a large piece of folded paper in her bad she was carrying. When she opened it, everyone gasped.

On the paper was a replica of the Li's ballroom. Many beautiful decorations were drawn onto it. Many sliver glittery ribbons tied to the pillars, together with red silk curtains that were on the windows. The tables were covered with a golden cloth and had to most magnificent design. The chairs were exactly the same with the current chairs in the mansion but with the cloth design, it matched perfectly. The chandelier was different and seemed to glow in the picture. It's no wonder Meiling was one of the best interior designer around. Just like Tomoyo, she had a natural talent for art, except both appreciate different kinds of designing.

Tomoyo spoke up, "It's really beautiful Li-san. Speaking of the ball, I had actually heard of it when in Japan. I went to check and found out that Li had four sisters. I don't have the measurements so I couldn't start until yesterday. I've made five dresses and altered them to fit the measurements I acquired from them yesterday and I didn't know Li-san would come..."

Meiling shook her head, "its ok. I'm actually going to wear another one of your designs to the ball. It's red with glitter and was one of your spring releases."

Tomoyo thought for a while and said, "Oh! I'm sure it'll fit you very well."

Yelan Li smiled while her daughters squeal in excitement; Tomoyo had taken their measurements yesterday and announced that she was making a dress for them.

Sakura watched the scene with envy. Somehow, she felt betrayed when Tomoyo said five and not six. Tomoyo didn't make one for her. Was their friendship really worth that much?

Without a word, she turned and walked away. She didn't notice that amethyst eyes were following her every move.

"_Hope you like it Sakura."_

Luckily, she remembered her way to Syaoran's room. Placing a hand on the identification panel, she heard the robotic voice.

"Identification complete. Welcome back Young Mistress Li. There's a parcel on the bed. It was sent by Miss Daidouji."

**_(A/N: Ok, since S and S were the only ones allowed in the room besides their personal maids, there's a function at their room if someone were to send something. However, they will have to enter their name.")_**

Hope awoke in Sakura's heart. Could it be?

She rushed in and spotted the parcel wrapped in pink paper. Excited, she unwrap the parcel quickly.

"Oh my god..."

Inside, was a beautiful dress. It was the colour of midnight blue. The edges were made of transparent material as the belt was slivery white. It wasn't puffy like those medieval dresses but flowed down to the floor. Like a Chinese dress, it was slit up all the way to her thigh. That was the only revealing element on the dress. It was sleeveless as the dress was tied together by ribbons on both sides. Accompanied by it was a blue corsage with a real blue rose sewn onto it. Also, she spotted white gloves which went all the way up her arm and a diamond necklace that was no doubt crafted by one of the best in the world.

Sakura then spotted a note and on it was Tomoyo's neat handwriting.

**_Dear Sakura,_**

**_I hope you like this dress. The necklace is a gift. I've made the dress before we came to Hong Kong. I know we haven't been on the best of terms since a year ago but I just want to let you know that I really miss you. It kills me to see you like this all because of... I'm sorry because I really can't say it. I know I would not be able to change your plans but I really want to get this message across: I value our friendship more than anything in the world, so please; can we be together once again?_**

_**Sighed,**_

_**Tomoyo Daidouji**_

Tears choked Sakura's emerald eyes as she hugged the dress to her chest. Tomoyo had still valued their friendship even after all she had done. She missed her cousin and video camera antics. She wanted her best friend back. The one she had always counted on since she was young.

"I missed you too Tomoyo..."

* * *

That day, the servants began Meiling's design on the ballroom. In the matter of hours, everything was done. All the Li sisters and Yelan had tried on Tomoyo's custom design for them. It fitted them perfectly and was really amazed by Tomoyo's work.

Syaoran didn't see Sakura for the rest of the day and for the first time since Sakura arrived, felt relaxed. He didn't even see her at lunch or dinner! Even when he went up for bed, Sakura wasn't there.

Somehow, he felt a hole when Sakura wasn't there. Shrugging off, he turned off the lights and went to bed.

* * *

The next day...

Syaoran woke up to come face to face with Sakura's back. Guessing that she had slipped in during the night, he stepped of the bed quietly.

Today, he and Eriol were going out to find a tuxedo since Tomoyo had only enough time for five dresses.

Dressing up quietly, she slipped out of the door unnoticed.

He met Eriol at the door and they both stepped out of the mansion.

They entered Syaoran's black limo and drove off.

* * *

Later that day...

When Syaoran and Eriol returned, they spotted the whole Li family in the dining room. They were having lunch. Tomoyo and Meiling were talking animatedly to each other and as usual, Sakura was sipping her juice quietly to herself

"Good afternoon Syaoran, Eriol. Did you find the right tuxedo?"

Eriol replied to his uncle's question, "Ya. It's once again, black..."

Tomoyo giggled, "Hiiragizawa, black is the most suited colour for men's formal wear."

Eriol chuckled, "I guess so. Anyways, Daidouji, would you care to dance with me later at the ball?"

His sapphire eyes glittered mischievously. Anyone could tell he was flirting.

Tomoyo, to Sakura's surprise, blushed, "Erm..sure!"

Meiling tried to stifle her laughter. She glanced to Sakura and noticed she was as shocked as Tomoyo was.

It was going to be one interesting ball...

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That night...

**_(A/N: I'm moving fast aren't I? I'm getting restless from continuous typing and I think this chapter will be over 2500 words if I were to type the ball So, it's a treat for all of you.)_**

Guests entered the ballroom one after the other, taking a few moments to admire their surroundings. Meiling, who was sitting at the main table smiled proudly at her accomplishment.

Syaoran and Eriol were on either side of her and were wearing their tuxedos. Both look devilishly handsome as many of their business partner's daughters swooned at the sight of them.

Beside Eriol was Tomoyo, who was wearing a sliver dress. It shaped her curves perfectly and had transparent white sleeves. Her hair was tied into a high ponytail with a sliver plum blossom clip as it cascaded down her back. She also had two sliver wrist bangles around her wrists and a sliver choker around her neck. To everyone, she looked like an angel from heaven.

Syaoran noticed that Sakura wasn't present. Suddenly remembering that she was the guest of honor, he knew that she was only to appear when everyone else was present.

Finally, Yelan cleared her throat and everyone's whispers came to a stop.

"I like to thank everyone for coming to this ball to welcome Syaoran's new fiancé from Japan. Now without further due, please welcome Sakura Kinomoto!"

High heels were heard as Sakura emerged from the top of the stairs. Every male jaws, including Syaoran's in the room literally dropped to the ground.

Sakura smirked when she felt all eyes on her. Her auburn hair was tied in a French twist with a few strands around her neck. Her necklace too glittered under the chandelier's light. She had on very light makeup and lip gloss. She was carrying a small purse. Syaoran could hardly believe that this goddess was his fiancée. _His._

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs, she bowed, "It's a pleasure to meet all of you. My name is Sakura Kinomoto."

Many males whistled and wolf-called, much to the annoyance of Syaoran.

Yelan then continued, "Now, as the food will be served, Sakura and my son will take the first dance on the dance floor."

This alerted the senses of the couple... first dance?

Reluctantly, Syaoran stood up and offered his hand to Sakura. Without any hesitation, Sakura accepted it, much to the envy of other females in the room.

Sakura placed her purse on the main table before following her fiancé to the dance floor.

Slow music swept through the ballroom as the engaged couple danced slowly. The lights were dimmed for the effect.

No words were exchanged as Sakura and Syaoran stared into each other's eyes. Meiling watched from the sidelines, more amused then ever.

Syaoran's heart felt like exploding as his hands was on Sakura's hips. It didn't seem to be affecting his dancing partner although he could almost see a faint blush on her cheeks. He was almost sure his face was on fire.

Sakura's legs felt like jelly as her eyes wandered over Syaoran's frame. He was sure handsome in his tuxedo. She knew that this wasn't supposed to happen. Her plans will be in rubble if **he** were to find out. She felt her icy barriers once again crumbled as she allowed the music enter her heart.

Time passed slowly as everyone watched the couple.

"Ring!" A sharp tone pierced the silence as Sakura's handphone rang. The trance was broken and Syaoran tried to shake off the weird feeling embedded in his heart.

Sakura whispered," Sorry."

Sakura detached herself from Syaoran and headed for her purse. Whispers began to emerge from the crowd.

Yelan stood up once again, "Let's carry on with the ball shall we?"

The lights brightened and everyone started to eat the food that was served to them.

Sakura stared at the phone ID in shock. It was _him._

"May I be excused?"

Yelan nodded and Sakura walked stiffly to the garden. Syaoran sat down and began to eat his food while Meiling followed Sakura's figure. Tomoyo knew what was happening. However before she could make a move, Eriol had asked her to dance.

Shyly, she accepted it and was accompanied to the dance floor along with other teenage couples.

Meiling decided to follow Sakura, "Ermm, I need to go to the ladies."

Ryu nodded and Meiling walked off, in exactly the same direction as Sakura was going.

When she reached the garden, she saw Sakura whispering to her phone. Quietly, she hid behind a pillar

"_Why are you calling? I was in the middle of a dance!"_

"_It's nothing. "Mother" wants me to, that's why."_

"_Ya. It's working. But I don't know if I can keep it up any longer."_

Snap!

Meiling gasped as she accidentally stepped on a twig while leaning too forward. Sakura turned around.

"Who's there?"

Meiling sinked back into the shadows as she heard Sakura's last words.

"_Call you back later."_

With a snap, she closed her phone; Sakura looked around and saw nothing. Thinking it was maybe just a squirrel, she walked back to the ballroom.

Meiling slowly emerged from the shadows and pondered, "Who was that? Is Kinomoto planning something?"

The full moon shone brightly under the night sky. Meiling looked up at it and said to herself, "There's something different about Kinomoto and I am going to find out exactly what if my name isn't Meiling Rae!"

* * *

**To be continued...**

**A/N: How was it? Both Meiling and Eriol noticed that Sakura's acting weird. Can they figure out what was happening? More importantly, can you? Lol. This is Cherri-star signing off!**


	5. Chapter 4: Change

**_A/N: Helo everyone! I'm back from Purity Love. I won't be responding to my reviewers from the last chapter since it has been so long! I hope you'll like this chapter! And just to tell you about how is my life have been going on for ABSOLUTELY no reason (I'm hyper right now), I just rebonded my hair! It's now straightened and smoother than it used to be. I finally have some style to my hair after my long fringe was cut. Anyways...let's get on with the chapter! Btw...some ppl are already guessing the plot! Argh... Nvm...I'll just add a few twists here and there! BWAHAHAHAHA! coughcough_**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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**Chapter 4: Change**

It was early in the morning as a long white limousine made its way to the Li mansion.

Inside, a golden ball of fur snored loudly on his cushion. This ball of fur belonged to Sakura Kinomoto. He was just on his way to meet his mistress again. Boy did he miss her!

"Kero... Wake up!"

The ball of fur gave a snort, giving the voice the signal that he was ignoring the call and was bent on going back to sleep.

"Kero... If you don't wake up now, you'll miss your **din-din**."

That word immediately was registered into the animal's brain.

Din-din equals to FOOD.

The Labrador Retriever shot up like a bullet, his tail immediately wagging and his puppy dog eyes stared into aqua blue ones.

This was Tsukiko, Sakura Kinomoto's personal maid. Her slivery hair was tied up in a bun with ringlets cascading down her face. Her uniform was blue and white, similar to the other master and mistress's personal butlers and maid. **(A/N: Touya and Fujitaka and Nadeshiko)**

The young woman gave Kero his breakfast which consists of freshly cooked beef tenderloin and rice and milk in another dish. It's sometimes a privilege to have a cook in the limousine.

"You really are a pig you know that?"

Tsukiko watched as the monstrosity too greedy to be even called a dog devoured his lunch seemingly in one gulp. Then, he was immediately given his desert, bacon and cheese flavored dry bones. It was no doubt that the pile was soon gone in a split-second.

The limousine's wheels screeched to a halt and Tsukiko placed a satisfied Kero back onto his cushion who immediately went back to his afternoon nap.

Tsukiko stepped out of the limousine and was awed by the size of the Li mansion. It was almost impossible that it was even bigger than the Kinomoto mansion back in Japan!

Suddenly, a flash of white leaped through the open door. "It" leaped onto Tsukiko and hugged her; **Tight**.

"Sakura-sama!"

Sakura laughed freely and let go of Tsukiko, "I've missed you!"

The maid smiled, "I missed you too Sakura-sama."

Sakura narrowed her eyes, "Tsukiko! What have I told you!"

Tsukiko immediately recognized her mistake and sweatdrop, "I'm sorry Sakura!"

Sakura immediately cheered up and turned to the ball of fur in Tsukiko's arms.

"Kero! Wakey- Wakey!"

The dog's nose twitched and instantly recognized the sweet smell of Sakura's scent. Black beady eyes opened and yelped happily at the sight of his mistress.

Sakura picked her beloved dog off his cushion and cuddled him to her chest. She nodded at Tsukiko and said, "I want to show you something. Come with me to the garden. Tsukiko nodded and the two entered the mansion while one of the Li butlers helped to carry Tsukiko's luggage.

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Syaoran sighed at the reflection of him in the mirror. He had just came back from his daily early training in the garden. Sweat caused his amber hair to stick his forehead. He then entered his shower and turned the taps as they squeaked.

Warm water poured from above as Syaoran's muscles felt relief. His thoughts began to wonder as he rubbed the dirt and grit from his body.

When he had returned to his room, the first thing he noticed was that Sakura wasn't in it. He had pondered for a moment, asking himself where his fiancé could be. From the past few days, he knew that it was a fact that she wasn't an early bird.

Suddenly, he heard barking from the other side of the bathroom door. Syaoran was puzzled; the Li family didn't have a dog!

Then, laughter rang though the air; he immediately recognized it as Sakura's. "_How did I know that_?"

He turned the taps and the water stopped instantly. Syaoran dried himself off and put on his collared white shirt and left one button unbuttoned. He pulled on his black pants and opened the bathroom door only to see the queerest sight.

Sakura was giggling at another woman while rubbing a golden-furred Labrador retriever on his tummy. Syaoran knew that the new human intruder was a maid by looking at her dress-up. However, it wasn't the Li family uniform so he knew she wasn't one of his family's. But, the thing that got Syaoran surprised was that Sakura was covered in mud and dirt and she didn't seem to mind one bit. In fact, she was laughing her head off!

"Tsukiko! I can't believe you have the nerve to throw mud at me!"

"Well, I used to play with you when you were younger and I just wanted to see your reaction!"

"Ya... I remembered that Okaa-san and Otou-san always laughed at me when they saw me sneaking though the house... Oh! Er... Hi Syaoran!"

Sakura only then realized that her fiancé was gapping at her like a fish out of the water. She had said his name without a chan!

"_Darn! I slipped!"_

"Sakura... may I please know what on earth is going on?"

Tsukiko stood up hastily and immediately bowed at Syaoran.

"I'm so sorry Master Li. My name is Tsukiko Yamita. I'm...erm... Sakura's personal maid from Tokyo. I have just arrived from the airport."

Syaoran nodded, finally grasping onto the situation. Then his mouth shoot off before he himself even noticed.

"And you were throwing mud at your mistress?"

What Syaoran didn't expect was that Sakura spoke up, "I'm not her mistress! I'm her friend!"

Sakura's eyes widened at her words, _"Oh great! Another slip. I'm not supposed to be "friends" with Tsukiko and the others!"_

Syaoran stared hard at a nervous Sakura who was pointing her fingers against each other at chest level. He was about to say something when he spotted something else.

"What the hell! That dog is peeing on MY floor!"

The other two turned simultaneously to the only animal in the room. Sure enough, Kero was indeed relieving himself on the sliver once-sparkling-clean marble floor.

"Ah! Kero! Bad dog!"

However Kero simply wagged his tail and snuggled back into his mistress's arms even though she was muddy all over.

Syaoran gritted his teeth in fury, "Ok... I'm getting the hell out of here and I do NOT want to see that idiot dog in my room. If you want to find him a place to sleep he can have a personal room next door for all I care. But there's no WAY he's sleeping in my room!"

Before Sakura could protest, Syaoran had already stomped out of the room in a huff.

Kero was however, barring his teeth. There was no way he was going to be separated from his mistress!

Tsukiko whistled suddenly, "At least he's a hottie!"

Sakura turned to her friend with and incredulous expression, "Tsukiko! He called Kero an idiot! I can't believe that no good-"

Tsukiko began pulling Sakura up from the floor and smiled at her, "I'll take care of the mess here and you better hurry off and clean yourself and get ready for breakfast."

Sakura pouted and was hustled off into the bathroom and began to wash herself up.

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**Dining room...**

Syaoran pulled his chair out suddenly and it caused a screech to echo in the dining room. He was muttering to himself and his eyebrows were furrowed in anger. The others at the table lift an eyebrow at his actions as he almost practically cut the plate in half while slicing his bacon.

"What's the matter Syaoran?" asked Ryu from behind his paper as he sipped his coffee.

"That fiancé of mine brought her dog into my room and it CONVENIENTLY relieved himself on the floor!"

Tomoyo's head shot up at this, "What? Kero is here? That means Tsukiko is probably here too!"

Syaoran only response was, "So... Kero's the name huh? That dumb dog dared to do THAT of all things in MY room! Why I oughta...!"

Just than Kero and tumbled down the stairs and into the dining room. Apparently, he had followed the scent of fresh bacon and eggs. When he opened his eyes, he was immediately cuddled by the Li sisters.

"Ahhh! He's so cute!"

"Such a chubby face. He's body is so cute and round!"

"His name is Kero right? My... such nice fur!"

"Erm... Excuse me..."

Everyone in the room turned towards the top of the stairs. Tsukiko stood there, nervous.

"My name is Tsukiko Yamita. I'm Sakura's personal maid. It's a pleasure to meet all of you."

Yelan smiled and nodded. "Ahh...yes... Sakura told us about you and her dog a few days ago."

Syaoran was silent. He's mind drifted back to the incident back in his room. Sakura had said his real name and defended her maid AND showed up in his room covered with mud. It was a complete opposite of what Sakura had shown to everyone of her personality. He then thought back to Sakura's actions the past few days.

She had behaved completely bratty and was clingy. Now, he had seen a new side of her... Or was it the ONLY side of her? Questions buzzed around the confused heir's mind.

"_Something's up here and I need to know what..."_

Out of the blue, Eriol spoke up.

"Hey Syaoran, I forgot to tell you that Meiling, Daidouji and I are going for dinner tonight at the restaurant "_Blue Nile_". Do you and Kinomoto want to come? Just a night out."

_**(A/N: Found the name on the net. I don't own it...)**_

Before Syaoran could answer, a voice came from above the stairs.

"I would love to. Thanks for the invitation."

Syaoran didn't even bother to turn around; he knew it was his one and only fiancé.

"Syaoran?" Mei Ling asked from across the table.

"Yeah... Sure... I'll go."

OOOOO

**That night...**

The group of five alighted from the Li family's black limousine. Sakura had been "uncharacteristically" quiet throughout the ride. She didn't even hang onto Syaoran's arm even though he sat right next to her! It was both a relief and a puzzle for our favourite amber-eyed teen. What on earth was going on?

They sat down at their table and ordered their favourite dishes. Then Tomoyo suddenly spoke up, "May I speak to you privately Sakura?"

Emerald eye's widened in confusion. However, Sakura nodded numbly and the two went towards the restaurant's window and out of hearing range from the table.

Meiling's ruby eyes trailed the two cousins carefully, the previous night incident still fresh in her mind.

Tomoyo started, "Sakura..."

Sakura began, "Tomoyo..."

"I'm sorry..."they said in unison

The two looked at each other surprised.

Tomoyo continued, "I just want us to be back together again. The past few days have been a torture. We were always in the same room and it was hard not being able to talk to you. Can't we just forget about everything and be friends again?"

Sakura hid her sorrowful emerald eyes and stated, "I can't forget what you said about him Tomoyo. You know that how much he means to me! We've been friends since forever!"

Tomoyo's voice grew cold, "I'm not taking back what I said a year ago. But I really want us to be back together. I can't stand it anymore! So please... can we just forget about our argument? I will not mention another word about it and I promise to let you do what you want in front of the Li's!"

Sakura stared at her cousin's desperate eyes. Yes, she did miss Tomoyo's constant video antics when they were best friends. It took a long time for their wounds to heal and now Tomoyo had requested to bury the hatchet. The question was... should she accept?

Sakura peered into Tomoyo's distressed amethyst orbs and saw true regret and grief. Her own heart pained at those emotions. Then she decided her choice.

"I forgive you Tomoyo. I'm so sorry of how I acted. Please forgive me?"

Tomoyo's eyes lit up with glee and almost yelled, "I will! Thank you so much!"

To Sakura's surprise, Tomoyo hugged her. The warmth Tomoyo provided had surely been missed in Sakura's life.

"Let's get back to the table. After we go back home, I'm giving you the dresses I've made for you this past year!"

Sakura laughed at Tomoyo's excitement and together, they walked back hand in hand back to the table.

But, when the two reached their seats, they've realized someone else already occupied them and was openly flirting AND feeling Syaoran and Eriol up!

The redhead who occupied Sakura's seat trailed her fingers up and down Syaoran's arm.

"You're so strong Syaoran! Look at these muscles! You have been working out haven't you?"

"Would you please shove off?" came Syaoran's annoyed reply, not noticing his fiancé was right behind him.

Beside the redhead was a blonde who was trying to grope Eriol's knee under the table. She didn't notice amethyst eyes eyeing her at the back dangerously.

Something snapped within Sakura as she saw the redhead's perfectly manicured fingers reached to touch Syaoran's messy chocolate locks. Her emerald orbs flickered and her insides began to boil as Sakura tapped the redhead lightly on the shoulder, her emerald eyes dangerously dark.

"Excuse me dearie. But you're in my seat."

The redhead turned to Sakura with an annoyed expression, "Can't you see I'm talking here? How rude!"

Sakura's smile twitched at the redhead's comment. She breathe in deeply and replied, "I sure that you have lot's to tell to my **fiancé**, but I would advise you to go to the washroom because the back of your dress is completely drenched."

The redhead froze when she heard the word "fiancé" but immediately reached behind when she heard Sakura's next comment.

"What?- My dress isn't-"

Before the redhead could finish her sentence, Sakura had lifted her glass of ice water from the table and without hesitation, poured it down the redhead's back.

The redhead shrieked and caused all heads to turn to her. Syaoran could only watch in amusement as he watched the girl he would like to call a bigger menace than his sisters shot up from the table at lighting speed and proceeded to jump around.

Her blonde friend who saw the commotion immediately reacted and accidentally flipped Tomoyo's spaghetti plate and caused it to slam against her chest.

Both girls shrieked in unison and left the table hurriedly without even casting a glance back at their two targets while trying to ignore the sniggers and laughter from all the other tables around them.

Mei Ling laughed out loud at the two girls while Eriol sat there chuckling. Sakura sat down calmly on her seat and calmly began to eat her dinner. Tomoyo giggled and sat back down on her seat while Syaoran could only stare at his fiancé, amazed.

Sakura then began to say, "I think you better order something else Tomoyo. I'm afraid that your dinner is completely ruined."

Syaoran then began to think, _"I think that this engagement might be more fun than I thought!"_

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**To** **be continued...**

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**_A/N: Sorry for not updating for some time. I was absorbed with Ron and Hermione from Harry Potter. Love that couple so much! I have indeed changed to plot to something more sinister and added a twist. Please R&R!_**


	6. Chapter 5: Questions

**_A/N: Merry Christmas Everyone! I have spent the last few days tweaking a LARGE plot bunny. I am in the middle of creating the plotline... It's gonna be quite different from my two current stories! It may come very soon... Enjoy today's chapter of Charade. Happy Holidays! _**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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**Chapter 5: Questions**

It has been about a week since the restaurant incident. No one had forgotten it... and I mean NO one.

"_Well... that redhead WAS flirting with my "fiancé"... I have every right to do what I did!"_

...Was the thought that continuously coursing through the cherry blossom's mind. Still, she can't get over the fact that she poured cold ice water down the redhead's back!

Sakura had believed that what she felt was anger and since it was also "time of the month", together with the overwhelming feelings with her patch-up with Tomoyo was the reason that she had reacted badly to the redhead.

After that, she had quickly tossed the thought of jealously out of her mind... However, it still lingered at the back of her mind, beckoning her to admit her true feelings.

Soon after that, Sakura increased her doting on Syaoran, who now already had suspected that it was just an act. But... the constant buzzing of Sakura's "whiny" voice was beside Syaoran's ear the whole time annoyed him to no end.

Still, with the thought of overtaking the company in his mind, Syaoran determination was relentless and refused to counter back to any of Sakura's words.

Now, the plans of the wedding were finally carried out. All the top women in the house...erm...mansion were seated at a large table.

_**(A/N: Tomoyo was making Sakura dress in her room)**_

"No no no! I want white curtains! Not PURPLE! Whoever had seen purple curtains at a wedding before!" Feimie stated obnoxiously.

"Well... It is a LI wedding! We should have done something unique and different!" Fanran countered back.

"How many layers of cake should we have? 8? 10?" Fuutie inquired.

"Which company should we call to print our invitation cards? Mother? Any suggestions? Xiefa voiced out suddenly.

Sakura was staring at the scene wide-eyed as she had long stopped scratching Kero's ear who was on her lap dozing. The Li sisters seem to practically argue with every little factor about the wedding.

"Girls!..." Yelan said beside Sakura, obviously exasperated.

"I think we shall have 9 layers... with chocolate frosting all over it! Yum!"

"WHAT? CHOCOLATE? Who has EVER seen a BROWN wedding cake?"

"Girls..."

Mei Ling was lounging on her seat...amused by the sight of her cousins bickering. It wasn't often that the Li sisters were in a disagreement. And when they get into a fight... they REALLY get into a fight!

"I think the Colour Ink Pte Ltd print good quality cards... What d'ya think?"

"WHAT? That company? Did you forget that they misspelled Mother's name in her invitation card to Cousin Zhang Yu's wedding?"

"GIRLS!" bellowed Yelan. The four sisters instantly shut up and sat rigidly in their seats, twiddling their thumbs and whistling.

Yelan sighed and suggested, "Why don't all of us take a walk in the garden to calm us down?"

The sisters nodded slowly and began to rise out of their seats.

"Mei Ling? Sakura dear?"

Mei Ling shook her head and said, "I think I'll be ok right here."

Sakura then said, "I'll stay right here too..."

Yelan smiled than proceeded to push her four daughters to the direction of the garden while Sakura and Mei Ling began looking at the papers on the wedding.

After a couple of minutes, while Sakura was flipping though the invitation list, she was startled by Mei Ling's voice.

"Ok... Cough it up."

"Excuse me?" Sakura was confused... cough up what?

Mei Ling sighed and tapped her pencil on her paper, rubbing out some lines and drawing them again.

"I know you are hiding something. Who was it that called you during the ball?"

Sakura was shocked at the sudden question, "You were there? How dare you eavesdrop on me! That was a private..!"

"Look missy. I will go to any extent to protect my cousin... even if I am forced to use underhand means." Mei Ling voice was dark, almost a growl.

Sakura gulped nervously, not knowing what to do. She struggled to regain her posture.

"I...ermm..uh..."

All of a sudden, a half-shriek-yell came from the garden and echoed in the halls "AHHHH! INTURDER! SECURITY!"

Mei Ling's fierce gaze was broken as her head was whipped to the direction of the garden. The shriek was definitely one of the Li sister's. Sakura and Mei Ling looked at each other and both bolted to the garden with Kero tagging along behind.

Sakura thought while running to the garden, _"Phew... Close call..."_

When they both reached the garden, they saw all four sisters sprawled on the ground terrified while a guard in front of them had a long gash up his arm. His face was twisted in pain while holding a ripped brown backpack.

Sakura gasped in horror at the scene while Mei Ling immediately began to ask, "Who dared to do such a thing... in broad daylight?"

Yelan, who was now tending to the guard answered Mei Ling's question, "We don't know. He escaped by jumping on the cherry blossom tree and over the walls. His face was masked."

The guard gave a grunt and stood up weakly, "The intruder was advancing to Mistress Li Fanran with a knife when I got here. I had a scuffle with him and managed to get this backpack off him...he ran away after I tore it though."

Yelan stood up and stated, "We really appreciate your help Mr Yang. Fanran... accompany him back into the mansion and call the ambulance."

Fanran nodded without a sound and was instantly at the limping guard's side while guiding him into the mansion.

He gave the backpack to Yelan and she opened in wearily.

Yelan gasped in surprise, "What in the world...?"

Sakura and Mei Ling peered into the piece of crumpled paper that was retrieved from the bag.

In it, was a picture of when Sakura and Syaoran were dancing at the ball. A marker was used to scribble across Syaoran's figure, however, leaving Sakura's figure untouched.

Me Ling was staring at the picture in curiosity while missing the horror-struck look on Sakura's face.

Yelan digged deeper into the backpack and found more pictures of Sakura and Syaoran, all of it with furious marks across Syaoran's face or figure. Other than that were a camera and a few markers. Unfortunately, nothing that will help to unravel the intruder's identity.

Sakura however, already knew who it was.

"_What was he doing with a KNIFE? How could he do that to the guard?"_

Flustered, she headed back into the mansion, heading for Syaoran's room. On the way, her handphone rang, indicting that she had received a message. She halted in her tracks and hastily took out her handphone and opened her message. It said :

_I'm returning back to Japan...msg me when you've broken the engagement._

Sakura stared at the message in utter bewilderment. _"That doesn't explain why he has hurt the guard!"_

"What are you doing here? I thought you were with my mother and sisters?"

Sakura yipped and quickly hid her handphone as Syaoran towered over her.

His amber eyes glared into Sakura's confused emerald orbs. Sakura fought to find the right words but only managed to mutter out random words

"Erm... intruder...guard got hurt... bedroom..."

Syaoran's glare was immediately became shocked, "An intruder? Was anyone hurt?"

Sakura muttered, "The guard was hurt when trying to protect Fanran."

Syaoran let out his breath, relieved that no one else had gotten hurt.

"Were you there when it happened?" Syaoran asked before he could stop himself.

Sakura shook her head, her emerald eyes hidden from view. One could only wonder what she was thinking about then.

"Good."

Sakura's eyes shot up, astonished, "Excuse me?"

Syaoran then realized what he had just said, _"Shit!"_

"Erm... nothing... my sister went to call the ambulance? For the guard?"

Sakura nodded, "I am guessing that the wedding planning today is called off."

Syaoran than inquired, "Where's my mother?"

Sakura replied as she began to walk back to their room, "I think she's in the living room or perhaps in the garden."

Syaoran nodded and rushed off, leaving Sakura alone in the hallway.

Sakura watched as Syaoran disappeared around the corner then she began to think to her herself, _"Why on earth would he want to hurt Fanran?"_

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Syaoran ran to the living room and found his mother on the couch with a brown backpack beside her.

He ran over and noticed that she was looking at some photos.

"Mother?"

Yelan looked up, her expression unreadable, "Syaoran... come here."

The 18-year old wandered over as she handed him the photos. Syaoran's eyes widened as he looked through each photo of him and Sakura.

"It appears that the intruder must hate you very much."

Syaoran peered at his mother, who now had a troubled expression on her face.

"I don't really have any enemies. Sure I was cold to some but not mean... Also, that doesn't explain why Sakura's in these pictures too, without a mark."

Yelan stared at her son worriedly, "Be careful Syaoran. I don't want anything to happen to you."

Syaoran couldn't help but grin a little at his mother's concern, "Don't worry mother, I'll be careful."

Yelan nodded and began to pace out of the room, but before she left, she spoke suddenly, "Watch out for Sakura too."

Syaoran's face gave a confused expression but answered anyway, "Sure mother."

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After the incident of the intruder, the next few days were quite peaceful. Sakura has become less "whiny" around the Li family and she had hung around more with Tomoyo.

One fateful Saturday, when Syaoran was reading the newspaper at the breakfast table, Tomoyo's voice broke his concentration, "Does anyone want to go to the mall with Sakura and me? I need some cloth material."

Syaoran ignored the question and continued to sip his coffee. However the next comment surely caught his attention.

"Syaoran and I will go." Eriol's voice came across the table. Syaoran almost spit his coffee on the newspaper.

"Who ever said I was free?"

"Me."

Syaoran growled and stared at Sakura, who was next to him. Her gaze was directed at Tomoyo, who was on the other side of her.

Fanran smiled but shook her head, "I going to visit Kai-kun at his home, he's the guard who saved me."

Her other three sisters giggled beside their oldest sister, "There's no way we are missing the sight of Fanran crushing on the cute hunk of Kai! Sorry Tomoyo-chan!"

Fanran blushed furiously at her three younger siblings, "Honestly, he's my friend!"

Tomoyo smirked and drank the last of her milk, "I would advise everyone to bring a hat or a pair of sunglasses, just to avoid being recognized."

Ryu laughed heartily at his seat, "Don't worry Daidouji-san. Syaoran and Eriol are masters of disguise."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at that, "Really?"

Syaoran snorted, "Ya... The last time we went out, Eriol wore a blonde wig. He looked hideous."

Sakura and Tomoyo giggled at each other about the little piece of information while Eriol gazed at his cousin, almost scowling.

"I'll go too. I need more pencils." Mei Ling spoke up. Sakura immediately tensed up, she was not going to allow Mei Ling to catch her alone again.

"Right then! What are we waiting for? Get changed!"

OOO

The group of five entered the Hong Kong Mall. None of them really went to the extent of "changing" their hair colour but merely put on sunglasses and hats and caps.

"Right then, Sakura follow me to this cute clothing store that I heard about. By the way, don't use my real name in clothing stores. Call me TomTom."

Syaoran rolled his eyes, the price of being famous.

Tomoyo than began to pull Sakura by her hand towards a stall called "Vintage Colours" and Tomoyo immediately began to pull out various tops and skirts once she stepped foot into the store.

Once Sakura hands were full, Tomoyo unleashed her rain of clothes on the two remaining males.

"Tom-Tom! You're burying Syaoran and Hiiragizawa!"

_**(A/N: Syaoran can't exactly hear...")**_

Tomoyo turned around and sweatdropped at the sight of two pairs of legs and hand sticking out of a huge pile of clothes, calling for help.

"Opps... I got carried away again didn't I?"

O O O O O O O

Soon, Sakura began to try on the clothes Tomoyo picked out for her while Syaoran and Eriol lounged on the seats available.

"How long do you think this will take?" Syaoran asked Eriol while closing one eye and leaning against the chair.

"Probably an hour or more." Eriol calmly spoke, giving no indication he was annoyed. But Syaoran was the exact opposite. He could almost feel his anger creeping through his skin.

"TomTom... I think this is actually quite nice!" Sakura voiced from behind the curtain.

Tomoyo than said, "Come on out than!"

Syaoran turned his head just in time to witness Sakura in her clothes. He's breath was held as his eyes trailed his fiancé's figure appreciatively.

Sakura was clad in a white and yellow top with thick white and yellow strings tying it up on her shoulders. The sleeve was short and her collar was cut into a V-shape but doesn't show anything revealing. Her jean skirt was black with sliver threads. It showed part of her thighs and fitted well with her current shoes which were also black. Her emerald eyes shone something that had been missing since the day she landed in Hong Kong. Syaoran just couldn't place it...

Then, the heir realized the sparkle and recognized it. It was Happiness.

Tomoyo squealed and stated, "Sakura! You look so cute!"

Sakura blushed prettily and was about to turn back into the changing room when a voice stopped her.

"Excuse me miss..."

She turned and saw a smiling woman in black with pearl necklace around her neck. "Are you interested in becoming a model?"

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**To be continued...**

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_**A/N: What about that? Will Sakura accept the offer? People still doesn't really recognize her yet! I will continue with this next week while I tweak with my other plot. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Cheers!**_


	7. Chapter 6: Fame

**_A/N: Hi guys! I'm on a roll these days. I just can't seem to stop writing! Even when I'm suppose to finish my tuition homework...ahem... Now, my new fanfic, War of Flight has just been posted and I know it will be hard to make it into a good fanfiction. The first chapter response was quite low but it's ok. It was like that with Purity Love too. Now look where it is at now! I believe in working hard and I know that my effort can be seen in my words. Hope you all enjoy this chapter of Charade! I will most likely continue on with War of Flight after this._**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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Chapter 6: Truth**

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"A model?" Sakura echoed. Hesitant was the first thing that had come to describe our dear Sakura's reaction.

Tomoyo, on the other hand, was furious, "I'm sorry. But my cousin Sakura Kinomoto only works for me."

The lady's eyes widened in recognition as she peered into the face behind the sunglasses, "OH MY GOD! You're TOMOYO DAIDOUJI!"

Heads turned and whispers broke out. Tomoyo's fury was immediately extinguished and was replaced with anxiety.

"Uh oh..."

The lady turned and spotted Syaoran and Eriol right behind Tomoyo, looking as inconspicuous as they possibly could, although not good enough.

"SYAORAN LI! ERIOL HIRIGAZAWA! Oh my god! Can I have your autograph?"

The group of four grimaced as people from all over the mall flocked to the clothing store. Syaoran, used to situations like this, flipped out his cell and pressed the driver's number on speed dial.

"Jason? Bring the Limo around the mall. NOW!"

Sakura yipped as flashes from handphones went off simultaneously. This was certainly isn't how she wanted to spend her day.

"THAT'S SAKURA KINOMOTO! CURRENT FIANCE TO SYAORAN LI! THEY'RE ALL HERE TOGETHER!"

With the speed of light, the four bolted out of the store. Neither of them noticed that the door alarm went ringing off from the tag on Sakura's clothes. It was fortunate for them that they had asked Jason to park the Limo one block away from the mall. Tomoyo and Eriol somehow managed to reach the exit first while their companions lagged behind.

As the Quad ran past a book store, Mei Ling happily skipped out. She was shocked to see the sight of her friends and cousins fleeing away from a group of people.

"Guys? What's going on?" The four had just passed Mei Ling, who was looking just as confused as ever. She had earlier dispatched from the group once they entered the mall.

"MEI LING! MALL! OUT! NOW!"

Mei Ling gulped as she was pulled by the hand by Eriol. All five of them headed for the glass doors, just in time to see Jason pulling the Limo into the driveway.

Sakura halted when she passed the translucent glass doors, "Wait! I haven't paid for the clothes! AHHH!" In her revelation, she had tripped over stairs that connected the driveway and the marble flooring of the mall.

Syaoran turned when he heard Sakura's cry. Just in time to catch her from her fall. But... that didn't go as well as planned as you can see.

Sakura's sudden force of gravity hit hard on Syaoran's unsuspecting body, making him fall. Their bodies slammed against each other messily. With Syaoran's arms outspread, Sakura's palms landed on Syaoran's chest. Sakura's two legs were on either side of Syaoran's own left leg, straddling him. But, the most shocking part of all was that their lips had smashed against each other unexpectedly.

Everyone was shocked at that particular scene. Their other three friends were gaping through the limo door. The public's cameras or handphones were going of faster than ever before. But the people who were most alarmed of all, were the two, on the floor, sprawled out in an undignified manner, kissing!

Syaoran's eyes were wide open and his body went as stiff as a rock. He didn't expect this at all. Sakura's body was pressed hard against him, allowing him to feel every curve and angle. Her lips were dry and soft, probably due to the cold air-conditioning in the mall. Nonetheless, Syaoran couldn't suppress the knot feeling in his stomach and his body's response to the action.

Sakura, on the other hand, had her own personal alarms ringing off in her head. Her spine tingled at the contact of Syaoran's body against hers. Once-dormant fire began to burn within her body. This was the closest the two had ever been before. Her body wasn't responding to her mind's cries of betrayal.

"_You have a BOYFRIEND! Get your lips of him!"_

Finally realizing what she was doing, Sakura scrambled of Syaoran. The public were giving catcalls but neither of them could care at that moment. The two lifted themselves off the floor and ran into the Limo, breathing heavily.

The door shut behind Sakura and the Limo instantly set off for the Li mansion. None of them could believe what had just happened, ultimately Syaoran.

"_What the hell was that? Great! It'll probably appear in the news tomorrow. What's mother going to say about this?"_

The other three in the Limo were as silent and shocked as they could be. Sakura, meanwhile, was having a mental battle within herself,

"_I kissed Syaoran! I kissed Syaoran! That's B-A-D! BAD!"_

"_But you love it don't you? It doesn't matter about that boyfriend."_

"_I LOVE HIM! I still do!"_

"_Even when you're engaged and just kissed the most gorgeous guy on earth who happens to be your fiancé? Right..."_

Soon, Jason pulled the Limo up into the Li's mansion driveway and the five stepped out without a word.

Unconsciously, the group split, the guys into the mansion while the girls to the garden. Tomoyo flitted worried glances to Sakura while Mei Ling tagged along behind curiously.

"_Let's see. Syaoran and Sakura kissed... not that's uncommon between engaged couples. Why in the world would she be worried about this if she **wanted** to be engaged?"_

"Ok... You two fess up! What the hell is going on?"

The Japanese cousins whirled around to the confused Mei Ling.

Mei Ling's voice was sharp and distinct. Sakura knew Mei Ling was sharp... and she knew that there was no going back this time.

"Alright! Alright! I'll tell you! It'll be much better this way anyway..."

Mei Ling waited impatiently for Sakura to start her "story". Sakura nodded to a bench and the three of them headed towards it.

Tomoyo sighed dreamily and told Sakura, "Start from when you and Li were pen pals."

Mei Ling eyebrows shot up, "You guys are pen pals?

Sakura corrected her, "**Were**... till I stopped writing to him when I was twelve."

Mei Ling nodded, signaling for Sakura to continue. Sakura took a deep breath and started, "till I met Hiroji that is..."

Tomoyo's figure cringed at the mention of that name but Sakura didn't notice.

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_Flashback_

_12-year-old Sakura Kinomoto sighed as she placed her pen down on the table. In front of her was a reply letter to her pen pal in Hong Kong, Syaoran Li. _

_The class chitter-chatter were all around her. That day was her duty day and that's why she had "miraculously" arrived early. After she had finished her duties, she had taken out Syaoran's letter and started to write a reply._

_Her cousin, Tomoyo Daidouji, was beside her reading, from what Sakura could tell, a magazine about the latest fashions. They have been together ever since the first grade where they realised their true relationship through their parents._

"_Ring!"_

_Sakura was startled out of her thoughts by the morning bell which indicated that classes were about to start._

_The class door slid open as the teacher walked in. The class became quiet at the teacher's signal._

"_Ohayo sensei." **(A/N: Good Morning Teacher)**_

"_Ohayo minna-san." **(A/N: Good morning everyone)**_

_The teacher paused then continued, "We'll be having a new student with us today. Come in Ina-san."_

_As soon as the teacher finished his sentence, the door slid open once again. A boy of the age of twelve stepped into the silent classroom._

_His hair seemed to be the shade of ocher and his eyes were the colour of cobalt. The girls were rendered speechless at his mysterious appearance and were captivated by his piercing gaze._

_His eyes searched the room and somehow instantly locked onto curious emerald orbs which stared right back._

_The pink-papered letter on Sakura's table lay forgotten as it fluttered to the floor. It was the last time Sakura Kinomoto ever written to her pen-pal Syaoran Li._

_End of Flashback_

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By now, Mei Ling was thoroughly confused, "So what does this Ina guy got to do with anything?"

Tomoyo didn't reply and Sakura was staring right off towards a tree with blooming flowers.

In a soft voice, which Mei Ling entirely didn't recognize, Sakura stated, "He's my boyfriend now, for three years."

Ruby eyes widened at the sudden news, "A boyfriend? But you're engaged-"

Sakura bitterly replied, "I know... I know! That's why I've been so called "sluttish" towards Syaoran-kun ever since I got here. It was our plan since the start when I discovered that Syaoran was going to be my last permanent fiancé after I chased the others away..."

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_Flashback_

_A few weeks ago...In Japan_

"_An engagement? With Syaoran Li? But Otou-san! I love Hiroji!"_

_Angered toffee eyes gazed hard at his daughter's emerald eyes._

"_Sakura, please listen to me. What I am doing now is for your own good. I've seen Ina Hiroji several times and I could tell he's just using you. Why can't you see that? How can you love him?"_

_Flares burned within Sakura's soul, "How can you say that? You don't even know him! I love him! Since I was 12! Why can't you understand my feelings?"_

_Fujitaka sighed exasperatedly and said, "Sakura. Hiroji Ina is just using you. Please just listen to me. You're to go to Hong Kong to meet Syaoran and his family tomorrow. Get to know him, for me, for you... please..."_

_Sakura gritted her teeth and retorted, "Even if you send me to Hong Kong, I will hardly care about Li Syaoran! I will do whatever it takes to break this engagement!"_

_Her father, at this point stated back as calmly as he could, "It's not going to be as easy as you think. His mother had already told him that if he doesn't marry you, he will never inherit the Li Company."_

_Shock registered in Sakura's eyes as tears poured out as she whispered hoarsely, "Why? Why do you do this?"_

_Fujitaka's distressed brown eyes grew grave and commented, "Because you deserve better than Ina Hiroji. Because you can't love him and because he is a low-life."_

_Sakura snapped at that and shouted out the words that she had never dreamt of telling her father, "I HATE YOU!" As she ran out of the large doors, her loud sobs echoing in the hallways._

_Fujitaka was taken aback. "I'm sorry, my daughter. I have to do whatever it takes to keep Ina Hiroji away from you. It's for your own good."_

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_Sakura slammed the door of her room open as she immediately headed for her handphone on her bed._

_She sobbed as she speed dialed Hiroji's number. It only took two rings before a deep voice answered the phone._

"_Sakura? What happened?" _

_Sakura smiled weakly at the sound of his voice. It was all it took for her to calm down to explain things to Hiroji._

"_I'm engaged again Hiroji. I have to go to another country this time. It won't be as easy as it is with the others."_

_There was a pause at the other end and Sakura asked, "Hiroji?"_

"_Sakura... You love me right?"_

_Sakura nodded quickly even though she knew Hiroji couldn't see her, "Yes. Yes I do."_

_A sigh was heard on the other end and Hiroji continued, "I have a plan. A plan for the engagement to be broken. Do you want to do it?"_

"_Yes. I'll do it."_

_End of Flashback_

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"After that, I acted sluttish in front of Syaoran after I told Hiroji what I remembered about Syaoran-kun. He doesn't seem to be the type that... you know... that flirts mindlessly with girls."

"So that Syaoran will drop you like a whore through this charade! ... No offense."

"None taken. To be truthful, my attitude these few weeks disgusts me. It feels great for someone else to know about it besides Tomoyo-chan."

Tomoyo coughed and broke the tension between the girls.

"So Mei Ling-chan, Are you going to tell Li-kun?"

Mei Ling contemplated between herself, "No... I don't think so. You've both been victims in this. It's not that I don't want Syaoran to inherit the company. But if Kinomoto-san really loves this Hiroji Ina this much, then I will keep this secret. Even if you decide to tell Syaoran, it should be Kinomoto-san choice to tell him, not mine."

Sakura smiled gratefully at Mei Ling, "Thank you Mei Ling. Words can never express my gratitude."

Mei Ling then smirked, "You know... your kiss with my cousin is going to be front page news tomorrow. Will your boyfriend get jealous?"

Sakura wanted to reply but Tomoyo beat her to it and spoke in a strange tone, "Oh believe me. He will."

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**To be continued...**

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_**A/N: Happy New Year Everyone! I will most likely retype my new story prologue and post it tomorrow with the new chapter along with year. Let's all look forward to 2006. Happy New Year! **_


	8. Chapter 7: Deceit

_**A/N: Ehehehe…Hi all… You guys must hate me….. I bet some of you have already forgotten me… Let me explain to you wat happened this year….**_

**_First of all, I was upgraded to Sec 3 taking triple sciences…. Plus I am havin 5 tuition sessions a week… each 2 hours. Yup…believe it and what did you know? MY COM BROKE DOWN TWICE. And I was suddenly absorbed into animax with Kyou Kara Maou, another anime that I now love. So now it's my holidays and I want to give you guys all one chapter before I disappear till who knows when again. I'm sorry all but believe me…I am REALLY busy this year since my CCA mates and I just took over and just don't have the inspiration. Hope you all forgive me and indulge in this long awaited chapter!_**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!**

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**Chapter 7: Deceit**

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"_Why? Why are you doing this? How could you?"_

_Crystal droplets began to pour down the helpless girl's cheek, disbelief and shock evident in her amethyst eyes._

_A cruel laughter that sounded inhuman bounced along the four corners of the empty room.  
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_The young girl whimpered as her scared flesh was touched by large cold palms, slipping up and down the skin as if touching white gold._

_A slick tongue darted out and licked the base of the girl's bare neck._

"_You're mine…"_

"**NO!"**

Tomoyo Daidouji awoke with a start, panting hard. Her hand reached up and clutched her nightgown, grasping hard as if trying to erase the pain.

"_I won't let him….Sakura…."_

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The hallways were quiet, like they normally were. A set of hurried footsteps echoed the hallways lit by the early morning lights.

Critters of flight chirped outside, accompanied by the sweet scent of blooming flowers in the Li garden. However, the figure paid no heed to the sight of such beauty; instead, he scurried quickly down to the ground level of the large adobe, seemingly headed for the living room close to the main door.

"_Gotta get to the damn newspaper before anyone…and I mean ANYONE finds out!"_

Seeing that not even the housemaids have arose from their slumber, he broke into a hurried run dashed down the final flight of stairs; skidding across the floor and finally stopping at the white ashen door, only to be greeted by the most repulsive image in the early dawn.

Kero…drooling…ALL over the newspaper.

An eyebrow twitched in annoyance but Syaoran's face remained passive. Burying the overwhelming urge to kill the Lab right there and there, he plastered a strained smile upon his lips and cooed, "Come here! Come here and give me the newspaper!"

The yellow-furred canine seemed doubtful but took a few small paces forward, his jaws clamped tight around the roll of paper.

What seemed like minutes passed, the lab cocked his head to one side and seemed to ask, "_Can I trust you?"_

Syaoran gritted his teeth in annoyance, his patience already wearing thin just after a few seconds, "Come here you _stinking_ dog you!"

Black doleful eyes lit up in realization and recognized the human's true intent. He bolted and ran through the door on the left.

The amber-eyed opponent (to Kero) dashed right after the other life form, completely aware of the direction his target and himself were heading: **The** **Dining Room**.

So that was how it happened; Man chase after dog. Dog skidded against carpet and entered the double door. Man not so lucky; went diving headfirst towards a statue beside the doors.

Syaoran groaned in pain but managed to stumble into the dining room.

"Oh my god!"

Syaoran looked up; his sisters… correction…his **FOUR** sisters stared at the paper with complete amazement and utter surprise.

**Busted.**

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**Minutes later,**

Ryu Li sipped his morning coffee with a furrowed eyebrow. Since young, his son has been known to be the most careful and wise among all his children. (Not that he has much to compete with) But this? How could this happen?

He sighed and exclaimed, "Just WHAT were you thinking?"

His loud voice echoed along the walls, his wife stood beside him, staring at her son with disappointment evident in her eyes.

His son and fiancé squirmed uncomfortably in their chairs. The duo looked at each other and stared at the newspaper which sat innocently in front of the fuming father.

Tomoyo Daidouji, Eriol Hiiragizawa and Mei Ling Rae sat on the opposite side of the dining table. As much as they would like to help their poor friends/ cousins, they wouldn't dare to face the wrath of Ryu Li, the man who Syaoran Li got his infamous temper from.

"It was purely an accident! We tripped and ended up like that! There was no _romantic _intentwhatsoever!" Syaoran finally shouted; confused and desperate get out of his parents' unwavering Li glares.

Sakura sat silently beside her "unwanted" fiancé, feeling a pinch of hurt at the young heir's words.

Was he that disgusted with their predicament?

Sakura then scoffed mentally at herself, _"Of course he is… seeing as how I played like a shameless hussy right in front of him."_

She told herself… she was doing it for her **only** love of her life, Ina Hiroji. She was to do anything he wanted her to do. Act like a slut? Ok. Ignore Tomoyo? Sure. But make someone hate her? She was beginning to doubt Hiroji's intentions to prevent her marriage with Syaoran.

Images of past events flashed in her mind. Syaoran's sister almost getting hurt, the photos found in that bag, Tomoyo and her recent reunion. Was Hiroji not telling her something?

Her boyfriend has been truthful to her ever since they got together. Would he betray her trust? She couldn't tell anymore.

"Besides! Wouldn't this just give us more popularity?"

"It will not when the heir next-in-line for MY Company act like some playboy in PUBLIC!"

Syaoran sat back down and grumbled. Sakura was looking anywhere else but at her fiancé and his father.

Ryu continued to said, "You all are not allowed to leave the premises till this thing dies down. Clear?"

All of them nodded. They were sure however, that that would take forever. I mean, the picture was even coloured for goodness sake!

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**Later…..**

The group of young adults had hung out in Syaoran's training basement room since that eventful morning.

Mei Ling and Eriol sighed and stared at the lifeless television screen. They flipped channel to channel as they yawned. On all the news channels, all they had seen were the now famous engaged couple picture, another company going to into bust, a newborn prince of Japan (this is true) and some serial rapist who managed to get hold of another girl. It was the common day news….b-o-r-i-n-g.

Syaoran gritted his teeth as he pulled another arrow. He released the strained thread and watched the wooden stick sailed right into the bull's-eye. It was the 20th one since he began. It was obvious that he was frustrated.

Tomoyo and Sakura sat together on another two beanbags. Sakura seemed to be deep in thought while her cousin busied herself with yet another garment; this time however, this unfinished masterpiece was for Fanran who was now currently dating the heroic guard.

"Urg! I can't take it anymore!" Anyone wouldn't be surprised if it was Mei Ling who said that.

However, what shocked everyone was it was _Sakura_ who exclaimed out in boredom.

"It's was just a simple display of public affection. From an engaged couple no less. Can't the media get that into their heads? If I were fifty foot tall I tell I ought a….!"

"…squash the printing building like a bug?"

"YES!" the cherry blossom's voice echoed throughout the basement

Sakura yipped when she realized who completed her sentence. It was Syaoran who had mysteriously placed his bow and arrow back onto its stand and was now looking at Sakura with amusement shimmering within his amber pools.

Sakura felt her face grew hot under the boy's stare. She suddenly felt extremely awkward to be in the center of attention where everyone was watching her.

Tomoyo giggled to herself. If this were to proceed smoothly, Ina Hiroji would be the last thing on Sakura's mind.

"_And that,"_ Tomoyo decided, "_Is something that must happen no matter what_."

The dream plagued her till this day. One couldn't really blame her of that particular unexpected, yet expected event. She shuddered from the cold flashback; it was something that was sure to be engraved within her mind forever. Too bad that no one trusted her…no scratch that….. her _best friend_ didn't trust her.

Mei Ling coughed and switched off the television, breaking Syaoran out of his trance.

"Anyone else have any suggestions? Syaoran, Eriol what do you guys normally do besides going out?"

Eriol pondered for a moment, "Well, I read books, Syaoran works out and attend to his company's duties and we play pranks, namely Syaoran's fiancés."

Sakura scrunched her eyebrows at that, "Fiancé? As in me? But, there weren't any pranks that I have encountered so far!"

Syaoran groaned. He did **NOT** want Sakura to find out about the reason why they didn't play pranks on her.

Eriol chuckled, "That's because Syaoran wanted to…emrghhh!"

Within a split second, Syaoran had crossed the room and slapped his hand over his cousin's mouth, "Ehehehe… We played video games and errr….oh! compete against my sisters in Para Para Sakura!"

The room went deathly silent.

Para Para Sakura?

Mei Ling laughed out loud at that revelation. Apparently, Syaoran was so desperate in covering up one secret that he leaked out another of his secret!

Tomoyo then suddenly squealed, "Oh this is TOO perfect! Sakura is one of the BEST Para Para Sakura players in Japan! Ohhh! Imagine the shots of Sakura and Syaoran dancing to the music! Pure heaven!"

Stars glittered in her cousin's eyes as Sakura sweatdropped. It was true. Sakura had been hooked to the game in her early teens. She is definitely one of the pro players of Japan.

Eriol chuckled, "Syaoran is definitely better than anyone I've ever seen. Not that he entered any competitions or whatever but he is better than those goons I see on tv."

Mei Ling's eyes glinted, "How about we pit the fiancés against each other? I bet on Sakura."

Tomoyo voiced, "Ditto!"

Eriol sighed, "I may be making a mistake but I choose Syaoran."

"Loser of bet cleans Kero's poo in the garden for a week."

"Deal" the three chorused.

The couple stared at their companions with widened eyes. This wasn't what they expect for the cure of their boredom

Not what they expect at all.

Moments later, the group found themselves in the mansion arcade. Sakura and Syaoran stood side by side in front of the machine panel.

Mei Ling whooted, "Go Sakura!"

Eriol screamed, "Don't make me lose this my cute little cousin!"

Tomoyo was already taping the scene with her handheld camera. No surprise really.

"I AM NOT YOUR CUTE LITTLE COUSIN!"

Then suddenly the music boomed and the game was ready to start.

**Song: Beat of My Heart**

**Sung by: Hilary Duff**

_To the beat of my_

_To the beat of my_

_To the beat of my heart_

_I'm thinking about,_

_Letting it out._

_I wanna give in,_

_I wanna go out._

_Been looking around_

_I've finally found,_

_The rhythm of love,_

_The feeling of sound._

_It's making a change,_

_The feeling is strange._

_It's coming right back._

_Right back in my range._

_Not worried about anything else,_

_I'm waking up_

The beat was fast but it was no challenge to the duo. Sakura felt her body move to the rhythm as she whispered the lyrics to herself. The song somehow reflected her feelings right there and then.

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart._

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_It tears us apart._

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_Now I'm back to the start._

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

Syaoran played the songs tons of times before. However, this time it sounded refreshing and thrilling. Maybe it was because of the girl dancing alongside of him? ...Na…maybe just because of a new competitor.

_I'm up from my down._

_I turn it around._

_I'm making it back,_

_I'm not gonna drown._

_I'm taking a stance._

_I won't miss a chance._

_I want you to see_

_I'm not scared to dance._

_The way that you feel_

_Could never be real._

_I want you to know I finished the deal._

_So I'm sayin to you_

_I'll always be true._

_To the rhythm inside,_

Sakura watched Syaoran from the corner of her eyes, a grave mistake but she couldn't help but find this competitive side of Syaoran mildly attractive.

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_It tears us apart._

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_Now I'm back to the start._

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

Syaoran could feel the sprit of passion burning within his fiancé as he danced to the beat. The two of them paid no heed to the amazed stares of their friends behind. The scores of the two were on par every single second; they had yet to miss a beat.

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

Sakura's mind flashed back to the incidental kiss the day before. It was unlike anything she felt. Syaoran's autumn scent clouded her mind though it didn't affect her amazing performance on the dance floor. Memories of sweet penpal letters swirled in her mind and…..a forgotten promise?

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_It tears us apart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_Now I'm back to the start,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_It tears us apart._

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_The beat of my heart,_

_Now I'm back to the start._

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

Syaoran now knew that this was the true side of Sakura. Her searing passion and love for life has been hidden underneath the mask of deceit she had put on in front of the Li's. The question is… Why?

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart,_

_Away Away,_

_Away Away,_

_To the beat of my,_

_To the beat of my heart._

The music ended with a beat and everyone watched the scores. Sakura won Syaoran by one mere perfect. Sakura gasped and leaped for joy, not taking note of her confused fiancé beside her.

She was about to jump once again but she stilled when she heard Syaoran's whispered words…

"Who are you?"

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**To be continued……**

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**A/N: I highly recommend the song if you are a fan of Hilary Duff. I couldn't help myself seem the song fits this chapter! What will happen next? Can anyone guess? Lol! Read and Review all!**


	9. Chapter 8: Different

**A/N: Sudden inspiration ppl…Been playing auditionsea. Whose playin pls msg me or leave a review, my IGN is Swanwings. Oh ya..an update abt my life. I have a yellow lab! Ironic? His name is Hash and I just realize it isn't that of a medium size dog…Hehehe…well, on with the story! Oh ya, sry abt not replying to reviews the previous chapter….I was too lazy to do so…argh….**

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Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, and I'm sure you don't too!

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**Chapter 8: Different**

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Eriol Hiiragizawa wasn't happy at all.

Not one bit.

Who could blame him? No one likes to clean dog poop, especially a pile of that magnitude. Pinching his nose with a peg, he picked the poop up with plastic covered hands and dropped the pile onto pieces of newspaper.

Unfortunately, the peg on his nose came loose and Eriol made the mistake of breathing in.

"**Oh shit."**

The teen quickly dashed for the nearest toilet, which is about a few hundred metres away. Poor Eriol.

Syaoran rolled his eyes at the sight of his pampered cousin. True, Syaoran was richer than Eriol but he did his fair share of hard work when he was young. Its not that he enjoys cleaning dog poop, especially if it belongs to Kero the monster, but watching Eriol green in the face is a good consolation prize.

Dumping the humungous bag of poop into the trash bin, Syaoran stretched like a cat after bending over for quite some time. As he watched the clouds rolled by, he thought to himself.

"_I knew it, Sakura has been acting all along. No snob could play like her. The Sakura I knew so long ago, is still somewhere underneath that mask. Was everything just a charade?"_

While the heir pondered, his fiancé watched him from her room, scratching Kero's ears as she sighed almost inaudibly.

"He knows my secret. I'm sure he does. I shouldn't have played with him…Why does he have to be so sharp? If only Hiroji was here…."

Ina Hiroji…had practically abandoned his "girlfriend" to her own resources. He hasn't contacted her since the day Syaoran's sister was attacked. He still didn't explain to her why he had hurt Fanran. Was her father right about Hiroji?

"_No…He's been with me for so long and hasn't lied to me once. There must be a reason for his actions underneath that queer incident."_

"Beep-beep.."

"_Speaking of the devil…"_

Sakura picked up her cellphone as Kero left the room. Gulping, she stared at the screen, with words blinking, "Dar Hiroji"

With trembling hands, she pressed the receive button and whispered, "Moshi moshi?"

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS SAKURA?"

Sakura yelped at Hiroji's sudden voice. He sounded very different, totally unlike how he used to.

"What do you mean Hiroji?"

"I MEAN THE beep kiss on the FRONTPAGE! WHAT ELSE COULD I MEAN?"

Sakura was close to hyperventilating, for the first time ever, she was scared of Hiroji.

"It was an accident! Really! When we left the mall, I realized I didn't pay for the dress and turned around. Things went bad and I landed onto Syao-…I mean Li."

"YOU'RE ON FIRST NAME BASIS WITH THAT BASTARD?"

Sakura epped in horror and remained silent. Then, she suddenly heard desperate muffles on the other end.

"What was that?"

Hiroji replied, "Ergh..it was nothing. I'll call you later. Busy……BEEEP"

Sakura sighed in relief. Hiroji was never this jealous, since Sakura was always faithful to him. Was it true that she's now two-timing?

Emerald eyes closed in confusement as the girl wondered this question to herself.

"No…I'm not. My only other will only be Ina Hiroji, not Syaoran Li."

Boy, she doesn't know how wrong she is.

_**(A/N: Can't blame her…she's blinded by l-o-v-e) **_

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Yelan Li sighed to herself. She has just gotten off the phone with Fujitaka. He was quite surprised about the news but was a little disheartened when he heard from Yelan that the kiss was just an accident. Fujitaka was clearly worried for his daughter…and she couldn't blame him.

Looking at the bag that belonged to the house's intruder, she saw the black markings on her son's faces. Could someone hate the couple so much?

Ring ring

Her phone rang. Yelan was snapped out of her thoughts and answered the phone, " Yes? This is the Li Household."

"Yelan, is that you?"

A warm smile broke on Yelan's face, "Da jie, shi ni ma?" (Big sister, is that you?")

He Yeling, the eldest daughter in the Rae family has just called.

"Shi. (Yes). I'm calling to invite your family to my husband's and I anniversary ball."

Yelan gasped, "It's the 30th one isn't it? Boy, you two are just too close!"

Laughter rang on the other end. "Look who's talking. I'm not the one with 5 children."

Yelan laughed, embarrassed, "What? We needed an heir!"

Yeling laughed, "Ok..ok…and the theme this year is Spanish. Oh! And why don't you ask your son and _future daughter-in-law_ to perform the **tango**? I'm sure the guests would love it, according to the response from the news. snickers"

Yelan sweatdropped, "Sure sister…whatever you say…"

I will now say the question going through everyone's mind, "What's going to happen from here?"

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"Erm, I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't hear you right. Did you just say TANGO?"

Syaoran exclaimed in terror while Sakura stood beside him, rendered speechless.

Yelan knew this would happen, "Since you two are confined for at least the next two weeks, you might as well spend some of that free time learning something new for your aunt's anniversary ball two weeks later. I've already got dance instructors for you two; they'll be in the recreation room on the second floor. Tomorrow is the first lesson. "

Yelan left the couple standing mortified, in the silent room.

"Syaoran-kun..An no ne…Do we really have to do this?"

"_Hiroji is GOING TO KILL ME!"_

Syaoran glanced at his fiancé and replied reluctantly, "I guess so."

"…"

"…"

"So, do you want to go to the basement arcade?"

Syaoran went silent, and then replied, "Sure, why not? This day just can't get any worst."

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Next day…

Lucky for the couple, they had managed to ask Yelan to allow them to get Eriol and Tomoyo to be dragged in as well. Tomoyo and Eriol won't be dancing in front of the audience but just as Yelan said, "Learn something new."

As the clock struck noon, the four stood before their dance instructors, Allison and Ivan.

Both definitely weren't Chinese. Yelan must have paid a lot for them to come here (within a day) to teach these four to dance.

**_(A/N: They're real life people from so you think you can dance show, watch their dance, one word,, HOT! S+S dance is goona be smth like that…rofl - go to u-tube and search SYTUCD allsion ivan)_**

"Morning to the four of you. Allison and I are here to teach you the Argentine Tango. You have two weeks to practice."

Tomoyo then raised her hand, "Er…is it hard?"

Allison shook her head, "It's quite face-paced and if you're not comfortable with your partner, it will be difficult."

One word rang for the teens, "Doom."

"We'll tell you the basics of the tango and some of the steps you'll be learning"

"Argentine Tango styles is danced in an embrace that can vary from very open, in which leader and follower connect at arms length, to very closed, in which the connection is chest-to-chest, or anywhere in between. Close embrace is often associated with the more traditional styles, while open embrace leaves room for many of the embellishments and figures that are associated with Tango Nuevo."

"The steps you're going to learn is something like this" The four teens turned to a shart beside the instructors. It goes like this:

Walks - a couple, in embrace, walks in unison

Salida Simple, or "eight-count basic" - salida as "the way out" onto the dance floor

Cruzada - (from cruzar - to cross) Action of the follower crossing her left foot over her right at certain points in the dance

Ocho - a figure-8 traced by the follower's feet when moving forward or backward.

Molinete - "windmill" a turning figure of the follower around the leader

Sacada - one partner displaces the other's unweighted leg

Gancho - one dancer hooks their leg around their partner's leg.

Barrida - one partner sweeps the others foot, displacing it along the floor

Arrastre - Drags

Volcada - rotating the woman around her axis, while her axis is tilted toward the man, causes her to "capsize" making the free leg "spill" tracing a figure on the floor"

Despite the difficult Spanish words, the teens knew exactly what the description means.

Syaoran then asked, "Can you demonstrate the dance for us once?"

The instructors nodded and asked Tsukiko, Sakura's maid to manage the radio.

The instructors got into their position as music boomed through the room. The teens watched in amazement and nervousness. They watched the fast paced steps and close body movements, and very close almost kisses.

Sakura gulped, blushing beet red, "Oh no. Oh no. Oh no!"

Tomoyo, on the other hand, shivered in fear, "After that experience, I certainly do NOT want a male's body THAT close to mine. It's almost public molestation!!!!!"

Once Allison and Ivan's performance was complete, they had left in four gaping with awe, terror and fear. The male teens just thought, "What if Sakura/Tomoyo and I really do THAT? God, kill me now."

"We'll start slow. Get into your positions."

Let's leave the teens to their doomsday shall we?

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Hours Later…in the basement.

The teens slumped, exhausted onto the couch. They had spent the better part of the afternoon (about four hours) in the recreation room. All four were pretty much amateur dancers, but the dance was incredibly hard, since all of them are reluctant to even let their chests touch.

"Why am I doing this?" Eriol asked out loud to no one in particular.

Sakura then replied, "Because I promised Tomoyo a week of continuous dressing-up and she needed a partner"

"Syaoran closed his eyes and then smirked as he too added in his bit, "Plus, it's a good way to improve you two relationship isn't it?"

The said other couple went fiery red, just like the dance they were suppose to learn.

Tomoyo stuttered her response, "Improve what? Anyways, I'm feeling hot. Why don't we go for a swim?"

Sakura giggled, "Nice way to change the topic cousin." Then she realized something, "Oh! I'm afraid I didn't pack swimming suits"

Tomoyo suddenly stood up, her eyes sparkling stars, "NEVER FEAR! Tomoyo Daidouji is here!"

The three sweatdropped as Syaoran said, "We'll meet at the pool at 5."

Minutes later, Syaoran and Eriol were already dipping in the pool while the girls were still in the house….scratch that…mansion choosing their suits.

Syaoran thought as he backstroked, "If Sakura is gonna wear something revealing, I swear Daidouji is so gonna die under my-"

Out of the blue, a hand reached for his leg from below the water. Before the ambusher could do anything, thanks to Syaoran's training, he swirled and grasped onto the person's thin wrist.

"Wait a minute…thin?"

He looked more carefully in the water even though its blur, he could see clear surprised emerald orbs.

The couple then let go of each other and went for the surface. The pool was quite deep.

Syaoran gasped for air as Sakura followed suit.

"What the hell do you think you were doing?"

Sakura coughed up some water, "Scaring you for beating me at Para Para yesterday. Mou, can't you be less reflexive?"

Syaoran didn't reply, since he was too busy staring at Sakura's suit under the water.

It was white and pink, the two Colours blending nicely. Cherry blossom flowers were sewn on the bottom piece and in the middle of the two cups. Damn Tomoyo to be such a good designer. His stare would have lasted longer if he saw her on land.

"HelloMr KungFu…you there?"

Syaoran snapped out of it and gave a grunt, before swimming to the more shallow end of the pool.

Sakura stared after her fiancé and huffed, "What's his problem?"

Soon after, Kero joined them. Thanks to the water, he was miraculously able to swim. The teens laughed while Tomoyo sat on the land, still untouched by water. Strange, wasn't she the one who suggested to them that they should swim?

When Kero got out, Sakura said she'll take a minute to blow-dry Kero off before he messes up the house.

Syaoran and Eriol went of together to the kitchen to grab some drinks, leaving Tomoyo at the pool.

Sighing at the sudden silence, Tomoyo decided to slip into the water.

"Ummm the water feels good…"

After swimming to the deep end, she suddenly felt a cramp on her left leg.

_"Oh no…"_

She struggled a lot, but her attempts for air were futile. She was sinking and slowly slipping to unconsciousness.

_"Someone help."_

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**To be continued**

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**A/N: Well well, how would Tomoyo get out of this? R&R! War of flight is next on the shecdule! If you're and DN angel fan, go read my new fic k?**


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